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"FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL '14" Appearance Confirmed!!
Israeli surf rock band BOOM PAM, who will also be embarking on a Japan tour in July, has been confirmed to perform at the festival. Their latest album, released in 2013, features covers of nostalgic hits from the 1970s to 1980s in Israel and the Mediterranean region, along with their original compositions. This Japanese edition of their album is now available!

(From the liner notes by Salarm Unagami)

The album Manara & Summer Singles by Boom Pam, released in Israel exactly a year ago in 2013, has now joyfully made its way to Japan. Rather than being the fourth original album, this album is more of a compilation, combining the first seven tracks of "Manara" with the latter four tracks of "Summer Singles."

"Manara" is the name of a small village with a collective farm, a "kibbutz," located in the northern Galilee region of Israel. In March 2011, the three members of Boom Pam, along with their close music companions, multi-instrumentalist Kutiman and saxophonist Eyal Talmudi, sequestered themselves in an old gymnasium in Manara and spent a week recording seven tracks.

These five musicians drove two and a half hours from Jaffa to Manara, carrying all their instruments, amps, speakers, and recording equipment to the old gymnasium, where they recorded in a live studio format. 
Here are some excerpts from my email interview with Uri conducted in May:

"I've always loved instrumental music. It's a form of expression that doesn't use words but communicates through melodies, textures, and rhythms. This album is our kind of tribute to the genre of instrumental music."

(1) "Telstar" is a 1962 song by producer Joe Meek, known as the "British Phil Spector" for its unique echo-laden sound. Telstar was the name of America's first communication satellite, and this song, which blossomed during the era of the intense space race between the US and the Soviet Union, became a fleeting classic.

(2) "Çiçek Dagi" is a 1968 song by Erkin Koray, the founder of "Anadolu Rock," a blend of Turkish folk and psychedelic rock sounds that emerged in 1960s Turkey.

(3) "Delilah Jones" is the theme song from the 1955 Hollywood film "The Man with the Golden Arm" by American composer Elmer Bernstein.

(4) "Manara" is a new song written by Uri for this album.

(5) "Cecilia Ann" is a 1964 hit song by the American surf guitar band, The Surftones. It gained renewed appreciation when The Pixies covered it in 1990.

(6) "Neimat Haoud" is a 1975 song by the Israeli Mizrahi rock band Lehakat Tzliley Ha'Oud. The original version is included in the Israel music compilation album Mediterranean Grooves & Raw Sounds, released by Tuff Beats in Japan.

(7) "MISSING LINK" is also a new song by Uri, paying homage to the legendary American surf guitar player Link Wray, who passed away in 2005.

The following four songs all feature vocals and are part of the "Summer Singles". According to Uri, these songs were named "Summer Singles" from the time of their composition and performance. "Ein Galim" (9), and "Ars Meduplam" (10) have official music videos, and "HaYareach VeAni" (8) has a live video shot at the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem, so be sure to check them out on YouTube and elsewhere.
In Japan, the cover of Red Zeppelin's "Black Dog" 

(11) might become the most talked-about. Karolina, who collaborates on this explosive cover, is an Israeli organic soul female singer-songwriter. Her latest album Zohar was produced entirely by Uri and carried the full Boom Pam sound. If you get a chance, I highly recommend seeking it out and listening.

"This album is perhaps a return to my roots, or maybe just an exploration of sounds from distant countries of a different era. I'm not quite sure yet. But every time I hear a mix of early rock and roll with exotic folk melodies, I get excited. That's the motivation behind this work and why I write and perform songs."

Text by Salarm Unagami