Great stuff! Idiosyncratic Klezmer fused with rock I saw the band live, and they play with 200% energy, intensity, and focus. But I'm glad I bought the CD because now I can hear the words and all the vocal and musical nuances. "Fresh Off Boat" (what a funny title) has grown on me with repeated listenings. Golem consists of six eccentric geniuses who sing in Yiddish, Romany, Russian, French and another language I didn't recognize. There's the wildman lead singer Aaron Diskin who's all over the place vocally, downed a pint onstage and wore eye makeup while he played the tambourine. Annette Ezekiel, the band's leader, accordionist and female vocalist has an amazingly expressive alto voice. Apparently she's also got an encyclopedic knowledge of Eastern European Jewish music and does lots of musical research for the band. Alicia Jo Rabins is a violin virtuoso. The trombonist plays wonderfully loose and creative licks, the bass player is elegant and the drummer is high-energy. If you love the Klezmatics you'll adore Golem, who are the younger, charismatic and very eccentric heirs to the Klezmer/fusion mix that the Klezmatics pioneered. Highly recommended.
Golem Rocks! I was blown away by this group at the Ashkenaz Jewish musical festival in Toronto a few years ago. They are great live, so go see them if you have a chance. But definitely pick up this CD, a punk/klezmer mashup. Lead singer Aaron Diskin reminds me of Jello Biafra, so maybe you could imagine a PG rated Dead Kennedys doing klezmer. I love Alicia Jo Rabins' violin work, and with a trombone, accordion, bass and drums rounding out the sound, how can you lose? These guys are tight and a lot of fun!
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