I interviewed Steve “Gangsta Rabbi” Lieberman for my very first article about Jewish punk in 2005. In 2006, he was the first Jewish punk artist I saw live; I also saw him perform in 2010 and 2011. I did an interview with him for my former blog, heebnvegan, in 2010. He’s the most prolific artist in my book; his 29th album (or, if you count the 38 prior cassette recordings, 67th) is forthcoming. Even compared to other punk rock, the Gangsta Rabbi’s…
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Michael Croland
Israel’s Useless ID Gets Explicitly Political
Posted on June 30, 2016Useless ID, Israel’s leading punk rock band, didn’t want to be thought of as a political band. “State of Fear,” featured on a Rock Against Bush compilation, was a political commentary and probably Useless ID’s best known song. When I interviewed guitarist Ishay Berger after Useless ID released The Lost Broken Bones in 2008, I asked about clearly political songs like “Misconception.” “There’s more to our band than politics, so we deal with it, but don’t want to be 100% recognized as the political band from…
Interview on the Rabbi Patrick Podcast
Posted on June 26, 2016Rabbi Patrick “Aleph” Beaulier comes up in Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk in two key ways. He was the singer of the band CAN!!CAN, and he’s the executive director of PunkTorah. Patrick was in New York this weekend, and we went to see Litvakus (described as an “acoustic Gogol Bordello”) at Klezmer Brunch. Patrick interviewed me for the Rabbi Patrick podcast. Click here to listen to the wide-ranging, 31-minute interview. Patrick and I discussed CAN!!CAN, PunkTorah, toughness, the DIY nature of…
Selfies with the Book: Part II
Posted on June 11, 2016Last month, I blogged about how people had sent me selfies with copies of Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk. The selfies keep coming! The first two selfie-takers below were apparently inspired by one particular selfie from the first blog post, in which the selfie-taker emulated the facial expression of Moshiach Oi! singer Yishai Romanoff on the book’s cover. This post was updated on 7/30 to include another selfie.…
Book Release Party!
Posted on June 10, 2016The book release party for Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk took place last night at Town & Village Synagogue in Manhattan. I did a multimedia presentation and Q&A, and the “Torah hardcore” band Moshiach Oi! performed. I was thrilled with the amazing turnout, and the event was a huge success! So much of the work that goes into a book takes place in private, and it was wonderful to share the book at a public event with dozens of friends,…
The Most Convenient Golem Show Yet
Posted on June 1, 2016Last night, Golem, a klezmer-rock band with a punk edge, played a free show at Penn Plaza in Midtown Manhattan. It was an approximately 10-minute walk from my office. When I lived in Virginia, I drove to DC, Arlington, and Richmond to see Golem. This was by far the most convenient Golem show I’ve attended! I can list 26 Golem shows I’ve attended, but the actual number may be higher. I’ve seen Golem more than I’ve seen any other band in Oy Oy…
Asher Yatzar: Yiddish Pop-Punk
Posted on May 21, 2016There’s a new Jewish punk band, and it’s a Yiddish pop-punk band! Asher Yatzar formed last year and got its name from the prayer said after excretion. The Chicago band played its first show in March. Click here to watch a video from an Asher Yatzar show. In the below interview, drummer/singer Dave and guitarist/singer Shmul discuss how singing in Yiddish isn’t so radical, how Asher Yatzar’s debut show got bogged down by Israel-bashing, and how Jews can exercise their…
Memoir by MDC’s Dave Dictor
Posted on May 12, 2016I was eager to read MDC: Memoir From a Damaged Civilization by MDC singer Dave Dictor, which came out last week. I knew MDC’s song “The Jew That Got Away,” but I wasn’t sure if Dictor was Jewish or wrote the song. The chorus declared, “Now I’m Max’s grandson, and I’m back to say, here I am, the living proof of the Jew that got away.” The lyrics ended with “And a shalom to you, motherf*cker!” Dictor addressed the extent to which he…
Selfies with the Book!
Posted on May 9, 2016I enjoyed receiving photos from readers when their copies of Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk arrived in the mail. Some shared photos of the book via text messages and Facebook posts. In what is truly a sign of the times, some took selfies! Yidcore singer Bram Presser poses with Louie. This reader impressively emulates the facial expression depicted on the book’s cover. This reader is responsible for getting me into Flogging Molly (my gateway into ethnic punk) and Yidcore…
Metalcore “Adir Hu” by The Schleps
Posted on May 6, 2016Joshua Sherer is The Schleps. He handles vocals, guitar, bass, drums, and recording for the one-man Jewish metalcore band. The Schleps’ earlier songs included “Maoz Tzur” and “Adon Olam.” For Passover last month, The Schleps released a new song, “Adir Hu.” Click here to listen. “Adir Hu” has never rocked so hard! One could debate whether this metalcore song is more metal than hardcore/punk, but the guitar sound has a great, heavy crunch, whatever you want to call it. Sherer said that while Passover…