Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphys at Forest Hills Stadium Photos by David Perle On Friday, I saw Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphys on their first-ever U.S. tour together. I’ve now seen them about 16 and 9 times, respectively—about 25 times combined. After I saw the two bands together for the first time in 2016, I wrote: Being such a big Celtic punk/rock fan gave me a good template to analyze Jewish punk bands. I already understood that there was a difference…
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Michael Croland
Yiddish Under the Stars
Posted on June 16, 2018On Wednesday night, stylistically diverse musicians delivered crowd-pleasing performances in Yiddish at Central Park’s SummerStage in New York. Klezmer was front and center, but there were elements of rock, cantorial, bluegrass, jazz, rap, American folk, world fusion, and show tunes along the way. I went primarily for the two punk-oriented klezmer acts—and they didn’t disappoint! Golem opened the show with a four-song set. Golem started with their “klezmer-punk anthem,” “Odessa,” and the danceable “Freydele.” Next came “Tzadikim,” the only new song that they’ve…
Jewcy Series: Punk Playlists for Jewish Holidays
Posted on June 14, 2018I’ve written fifteen punk-related articles for Jewcy in the last two years (plus more in 2009 and 2010). I’m particularly proud of what I now consider to be a complete series, which explored Jewish punk songs vis-à-vis Jewish holidays. Published between September 2016 and today, these nine articles cover a wide range of holidays and occasions (including some you probably haven’t heard of!) and feature songs by nineteen different artists. There are two artist-specific articles (Schmekel for Tishrei and Moshiach Oi! for Shavuot) and…
Anthony Bourdain: Jewish Punk?
Posted on June 8, 2018After celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain committed suicide today, I was surprised to learn that he was Jewish and had a punk background. Bourdain was Jewish on his mother’s side. When filming in Jerusalem in 2013, he reportedly said that he “was raised without religion. One side of the family long ago, Catholic. I think. The other side, Jewish. I’ve never been in a synagogue. I don’t believe in a higher power. But that doesn’t make me any less Jewish.” Ramones…
DIY Shavuot Learning Fest, Including My “Vegetarianism in the Jewish Tradition” Presentation
Posted on May 20, 2018Wandering Jews of Astoria hosted a learning fest for Shavuot last night. While I’ve enjoyed the massive, all-night version at the Manhattan JCC in years past, it was more intimate having a dozen people in a board member’s living room. In a very DIY manner, community members taught—and learned from—each other. While all my Jewish presentations since 2013 had focused on Jews and punk, I dusted off my “Vegetarianism in the Jewish Tradition” presentation, which I gave in different iterations…
Farewell, Punk Jews Facebook Group
Posted on May 17, 2018The 2012 documentary Punk Jews shined a spotlight on alternative Jewish culture, including the Torah hardcore band Moshiach Oi! The team behind the documentary (director Jesse Zook Mann, producer Evan Kleinman, and co-producer Saul Sudin) did more than just create a great film. Dating back before the film’s release, they created a community for outside-the-box Jews, both with events and through the Punk Jews group on Facebook. Through the years, I’ve enjoyed the conversations through the Facebook group, learned about new artists (which I’ve written…
Two Years Since the Book Was Published
Posted on April 30, 2018Today marks two years since Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk was published. I did a one-year anniversary post, and now it’s time to recap everything that’s happened since! My article with the most reach was “Punk Bands Prove Shofar Isn’t Just for the High Holidays.” I wrote it for JTA (a wire service), and it was picked up by newspapers in the U.S., Canada, and Israel, including The Jerusalem Post and The Times of Israel. I wrote “What Goes into a…
Elisha Wiesel Discusses the Ramones, Nazi/German Imagery in Punk/Hardcore
Posted on April 4, 2018Since Holocaust survivor and educator Elie Wiesel passed away in 2016, there have been a few articles profiling his son, Elisha Wiesel, and mentioning his punk background. Howie Abrams, author of Finding Joseph I: An Oral History of H.R. from Bad Brains, interviewed Elisha for Decibel, and the piece just went online today. The interview focuses on Elisha’s rebellious adolescence and his interest in punk rock, hardcore, and metal. The highlight of the article is when Elisha discusses his relationship with his son (and…
Jewish Museum of Maryland Presentation & Na Nach Oi! Performance
Posted on March 8, 2018At the Jewish Museum of Maryland on Sunday, I gave a multimedia presentation about Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk and Moshiach Oi! front man Yishai Romanoff performed a solo acoustic set (under the stage name Na Nach Oi!). The Baltimore Jewish Times had this to say about my presentation: “If being an American Jew can feel like having one foot planted in two worlds, these Jewish punks tried to keep one foot in each world while moshing,” he said.…
Updates on Key Bands
Posted on February 18, 2018Key artists featured in Oy Oy Oy Gevalt! Jews and Punk—and this blog—have remained relevant. They are still playing shows, releasing music, and getting talked about in a variety of media outlets—including The New York Times. Here are updates from the last few months. On Thursday, Tablet‘s Unorthodox podcast featured Golem singer/accordionist Annette Ezekiel Kogan and violinist Jeremy Brown. The duo performed “Odessa,” which Kogan called their “klezmer-punk anthem.” After Kogan brought up the topic of authenticity in klezmer, Brown said, “Every…