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LP
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BTR 127LP
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Eje Eje, the orbiting side project of Şatellites founder and multi-instrumentalist Itamar Kluger, shares Primordial Soup, his second album on Batov Records, stirring an even wider pot of influences from East to West that defies genre. Kluger launched his solo project, Eje Eje, with the 2023 Five Seasons LP (BTR 073LP), playing the majority of instruments himself and refining his production chops. Kluger's blend of traditional Mediterranean and Middle Eastern music with psych, funk, dub, and beat production, culminated in strong support from BBC Radio 6 Music, BBC Radio 2, and Songlines. Much like its predecessor, Primordial Soup was largely self-recorded by Kluger, blending meticulous studio work, recalling DJ Shadow or early Four Tet, with raw, expressive performances -- mainly himself on strings, bass guitar, percussion, and keys, including a new recently acquired microtonal keyboard -- perfect for exploring Eastern musical scales, plus musical friends such as drummer Raz Man of Sababa 5, Şatellites, and Project Gemini fame. Taking its name from the scientific theory on the origins of life, Primordial Soup is as much about sonic experimentation as it is a metaphor for existence itself. For Kluger, the title represents both a philosophical question and a creative mission. Kluger began work on Primordial Soup in October 2023, though many ideas had been gestating long before. The process was shaped by both creative compulsion and emotional necessity. Album opener, "Oyun Çorbası" is a playful fusion of Turkish folk and indie rock textures. Its title is a wordplay on "Oyun Havaları" (traditional dance tunes) and "çorba" (soup), reflecting the track's mix of influences. A tight, marshy groove from drummer Raz Man drives the rhythm, while a phased baglama riff leads, layered with swirling keys into a hazy, cymbal-driven bridge. "The Bride" is a collaboration between Eje Eje and rising flautist, percussionist and multi-instrumentalist Elad Kimhi. Inspired by Lebanese weddings, the track blends tradition with dancefloor energy. Known for his work with Firqat El Nur Orchestra, Sharif, among others, Kimhi brings a deep understanding of Mediterranean music, from Andalusian to Moroccan and Turkish. From brooding cinematic rides to joyous wedding bangers, Primordial Soup explores what it means to be alive, connected, and creative in turbulent times and cements Eje Eje as one of the most exciting voices fusing Middle Eastern traditions with cutting-edge beat culture. For fans of: Sven Wunder, The Gaslamp Killer, Şatellites.
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7"
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BTR 079EP
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Batov Records' Middle Eastern Grooves 45s series welcomes the latest addition to its eclectic roster -- a two-track EP from Eje Eje, the psych and funk inspired project from Şatellites band leader and producer, Itamar Kluger. Featuring the tracks "That Rainy Down" and "Coral Sex," the EP showcases Eje Eje's unique blend of Middle Eastern melodies, soulful grooves, and psychedelic sounds. On the A-side "That Rainy Down," The electro baglama player takes the lead, building and building as if, "he is pushing himself to his limit", says Itamar, "seeking catharsis as he walks to the edge of the cliff with confidence", whilst a baladi rhythm plays like an immense march of drummers. On the B-side is the funkier "Coral Sex", which according to Itamar tells a story of a drunk tramp bothering the refined and self-important occupants of an exclusive hotel lobby. Reflecting this friction, the track juxtaposes a silky and sophisticated R&B sound, with loosely, or even drunkenly, played take on rebetiko, a traditional Greek music associated with the poorest of city dwellers, played on a long-necked Greek lute known as a bouzouki. As each track develops, new layers are revealed, inviting the listener to delve deeper. The effect is intentional. As Itamar says, "there is this kind of music that hooks you in a different way every time you hear it, different places in the songs lighting up in different colors, like slowly revealed layers. In our (Eje Eje) case, it is just such a hazed blend. It could make a very specific atmosphere, color a very specific movie scene that is lost in time or yet to be directed, or a very specific moment with your headphones on a long bus to the desert." Itamar Kluger is best known for his work with the Satellites, a six-piece band whose blend of Turkish folk and psych with funk and disco won them champions and listeners across the globe, from KEXP in Seattle to BBC Radio 6 Music, and FIP in France. Eje Eje's first 45 promises to be at least as quirky and original, if not more so, since the project is even more unshackled from traditional concepts of a band.
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LP
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BTR 073LP
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Batov Records presents Five Seasons, the debut album by Eje Eje, the brand-new solo project of Itamar Klüger of the Şatellites. A fresh and contemporary world incorporating the rich diversity of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean musical styles with psych, funk, dub, and other internationally known sounds. Itamar Kluger is best known for his work with the Şatellites, a six-piece band whose blend of Turkish folk and psych with funk and disco won them champions and listeners across the globe. With Eje Eje, Itamar brews a fresh blend of psychedelic rock and funk, incorporating a wide range of influences, from Levantine dabke, Persian bandari music played at weddings and other celebrations, the traditional "Khaliji" music heard across the Gulf, and Turkish traditional folk music, to the more international renown sounds of Afrobeat, Saharan blues, indie rock, electronica, and Jamaican roots and dub. Eje Eje's special blend of musical perspectives reflects Itamar's interest in humankind's subjective perception of reality, informed by national and global cultural movements and traditions, and insistence on collectively creating and sharing stories, at times to explain the unexplainable. Itamar noted the difference between the symmetrical Western concept of four seasons, celebrated by Vivaldi, versus the five seasons of the Chinese calendar, winter, spring, summer, end of summer, and fall. The end of summer is a short season, characterized by the elemental earth, the time of year when fruit fall and rot beneath the trees. Each of the tracks on 'Five Seasons' reflects the spirit of the season in which it was written, and the terrain that inspired it, from the arid, mountainous desert to the sleepy streets of Eje Eje's hometown of Haifa and the busy crowded streets of Jaffa, Tel Aviv, where he currently resides. Bass and percussion combine into a deadly groove on the lead single "Black Sea Majic", laying the groundwork for a mantra-like saz to lead the melody, accompanied by giggling synths, mimicking the sound of the woodwind Armenian duduk, building into a continuous trace, the beginning half forgotten and the end lost. Hearing it back, Itamar imagines a bustling market in a small town by the shores of the Black Sea. Recorded in spring, "Saved From The Jazz" provided the first taste of this new project, appearing on Batov Records' first full compilation of "Middle Eastern Grooves". A beautiful collage of guitar grooves over a deadly drum rhythm. This continues on "That Rainy Dawn", a winter piece that slowly evolves, featuring an electro baglama over an Egyptian baladi rhythm.
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