More of a "happening" than a club, with more "movement" than dancing, the Boogie convenes somewhat regularly at Jerusalem's International Cultural Center.
By BEN JACOBSONben band 88(photo credit: )
The Boogie is alive again. More of a "happening" than a club, with more "movement" than dancing, the Boogie convenes somewhat regularly at Jerusalem's International Cultural Center for Youth (ICCY) on Emek Refaim. World-music guest DJs spin free-form polyethnic grooves, and Eastern ethnic fusion acts churn out the jams, while hundreds of post-India barefoot revelers (freakim, in Hebrew slang) spin around, knees bent and arms stretched skyward.
Like all big-name dance venues in Jerusalem, the Boogie goes on hiatus for the summer, when the students clear out of town. But now that the holidays are over, the Boogie is back. Last month, it kicked off the season with events in conjunction with the Oud Festival and a performance by New York hassidic jazz horn experimenter Daniel Zamir. This week, a DJ is scheduled to warm up the crowd at 8:30, and at 11, world ethnic fusion band Hamaalot takes the stage.
Naor Carmi (bass and tanbur - an exotic Turkish string instrument) has worked with the renowned Bustan Avraham and Habreirah Hativit ensembles.
Assaf Zamir (frame drums and other hand percussion) has toured and recorded with the likes of Eden Mi Qedem and Yair Dallal. Ziv Yehezkeli (vocals and pantam - a Swiss-patented hollow metal plate that sounds like a cross between a harp and a Caribbean steel drum) collaborates regularly with various Cuban and Kurdish ensembles.
Hamaalot explores the sounds of the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, India, Latin America and Jewish Diaspora tribes of the East and West. Active for four years, its debut studio album is near completion. According to Yehezkeli, other than the studio sessions and this week's Boogie appearance, Hamaalot is relatively inactive, so this may be the only chance to see the group live for some time.
On the other hand, each of the band members has been known to appear as a session man with any number of acts, often at the Boogie, where impromptu ensembles feature fluid rosters. As Boogie organizer Avi Edri puts it, "What you get at the Boogie is combinations of musicians that you don't hear anywhere else."
Thursday, ICCY, Rehov Emek Refaim 12, Jerusalem. The Hamaalot Trio's set is scheduled for 11. See www.boogienights.co.il, or call (052) 860-8084.
