Golem, a klezmer-rock band with a punk edge, released a new video today for “Vodka Is Poison” (from the band’s 2014 album, Tanz). Click here to watch the video on YouTube.
In Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk, I discuss in depth how the label “punk” relates to Golem. In the chorus especially, “Vodka Is Poison” has a heaviness and fast tempo that give off a punk vibe. The focus on alcohol certainly doesn’t detract from that.
I’ve seen Golem live an estimated 20 times, which is the most I’ve seen any band. Here are excerpts from posts on my former blog, heebnvegan, about some of those concert experiences.
About the Punk Jews benefit show in 2010:
Golem’s highly danceable sound was the turning point that got the party rocking and got the audience enthused. Toward the end of Golem’s set, multiple horas broke out in the middle of the pit. I have to admit that I enjoyed causing a bit of chaos when I tried to get a bunch of casually hora-dancing punks who’d been circling to the right to circle to the left instead. Somehow it all worked out.
About my first time seeing Golem in 2006:
Golem played a rousing set in front of “every Jew in San Francisco,” as one girl said on her cell phone. Their punked up klezmer was danceable and outrageously fun, and I’m ecstatic that I get to see them again in less than a week. All hell broke loose when they played the hora, which got half the people in attendance to dance around the room while Golem’s “Hanukkah Horas,” singer, fiddler, and drummer showed off underwear with Hebrew lettering.
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