Hailed as the unlikely new Middle East must-watch Rock'n'Roll act (“The best new band in Israel”, Time Out Tel Aviv), Electra is definitely following the Kasbah Rock tradition combining the raw live energy of the likes of The Clash with an activist agenda, a reflection of this troubled part of the world in which they live.
We caught up with Electra's lead singer/ song writer Nitzan Huresh to talk more about the band and their favorite places.
Interview by Karen Isenberg Jones
KIJ: Your band has been together for nearly a decade but there was a 3 year hiatus in there. What caused you guys to get back together?
NH: I had moved to London. I was living in London. On day Eclectic’s bass player Doron called me up and said he found the perfect drummer for the group. In 2008 I came back to Israel and we started playing a lot. Our recent history really started then in 2008. Since then we got signed by Anova and have released two albums and 1 EP.
KIJ: You guys travel and play all over the world and have played in the United States many times. Last year, you completed a coast to coast tour of the U.S. Where is your favorite place to play?
NH: I don’t know. It depends on the gig and the atmosphere. When you are on tour it’s a hectic experience. Sometimes you can’t remember where you’ve been last night. I would say it’s not about a certain city or country, but the atmosphere. Tel Aviv is our home town and when we play there we get the biggest and most fanatic crowd. I would say because of this Tel Aviv is my favorite place.
KIJ: All your songs are in English? Why did you choose only to record in English?
NH: We didn’t choose it. It was a natural thing to do because all the music we liked growing up came from the U.S. or the U.K. We wanted to sound like those bands. I think our music speaks English.
KIJ: What kind of music has influenced you the most?
NH: Staring with rockabilly music and then moving forward to 60’s garage rock with bands like The Sonics and Strawberry Alarm Clock… then to Motown then to Jamaican music like Dub or Ska…. then onto gGamrock like New York punk – late 70’s New York punk and on and on .. .
Israeli Rock sensation Electra will open for Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Lisa Loeb at the Atlanta Jewish Music Festival Main event on March 16th.