The Sound of 5772 / תשע”ב

By Mini Z (Jacob Friedman)

The sound of Jewish Music has seen many changes over the years but the ‘sound of 5772/2012’ is outstanding and a sound like never heard before, especially since multiple top artists are putting forth their best. It is a very rare occurrence to have so many new emerging artists along with the old classic artists all come out with great hits at once! This phenomenon happens once in a blue moon.

For starters, the King of Jewish Music, Mordechai Ben David (MBD) has released the final album of his golden career (just before Succos). Kissufim proves MBD is a true professional producing quality music to the utmost degree which reflects rare talent – something his fans have seen throughout the years. In this last addition to his magnificent collection we are once again are treated to MBD’s relaxing, heartfelt, and uplifting album which nourishes the soul. Although this is his final full album, MBD will not be lost to the music scene. In fact he will continue to appear in concerts, guest star on albums, and may even put out singles.

Another album which has been long awaited and anticipated for six long years has finally been released just about two months ago by the great Avraham Fried. After his world tour, Fried’s fans are not left feeling empty because they have this new album in hand. It is alive, upbeat, exciting and energetic. Unlike some of his other past albums Keep Climbing is unique for its varied styles. On this album there is a song for everyone.
Avremel’s natural talent shines through in his music. This powerhouse, who has always been at the forefront of Jewish Music, is able to make you dance and make you cry. His music brings the raw emotions we feel to every Jew, whether it be one of pure joy or one of sadness. Avremel said he plans to continue putting out great Jewish music as long as his fans are listening!

After giving you his heart in has last album, Meimke D’Lipa, he takes a Leap of Faith with his upcoming album as he continues with his high energy, excitement and pure joy. Lipa has once again teamed up with an up and coming star on the Jewish Music scene, Naftali Schnitzler to produce one great album! They each bring their own, unique talents to the table and Lipa says when they work together “it’s electrifying”.
Being a Yiddish speaker, most of Lipa’s work was done in Yiddish. However, this album will feature several English and Hebrew songs. While it will have less Yiddish, it will still have the classic Lipa feeling. The album will consist of 12 new tracks with compositions by Yossi Green (who has composed in the past some of Lipa’s biggest hits including Gelt, Wake Up and Diet), Pinky Weber, Moishy Lax, Yishai Lapidot, some newcomers on the scene, and Lipa himself. Arrangements on the album were done by Mona Rosenblum, Ruvi Banet, Moshe Laufer and Naftali Schnitzler. The superb choir will feature some of today’s biggest Chasidish vocalists including Shloime Daskal, Shragee Gestetner, Pinky Weber, Beri Weber, Yoeli Greenfeld, Sruly Green and Tzali Gold. As told to me by Lipa, this choir will be something to behold.
Lipa confided that throughout his life, when times got rough, his faith kept him going. Today with everything going on in the world, the Jewish people need to hold on to their faith, thus the name of his new album! It is due out right before Shavous.
A groundbreaking music video is in the works as well, and it will be something never seen before!

After gaining tremendous success with their music video which has taken the internet by storm, and touring the globe spreading Ya’alili fever, they are back!
As a band and as song writers themselves, Bentzi and Shmuely Marcus aka 8th Day always work their hardest to put out their best work, and will never be satisfied until it is perfect. They move forward with this attitude, which is evident in their new upcoming album, All You Got. The new album due out this Spring will be stylistically different from the others. The classic 8th Day sound is more “old fashioned” versus the new stuff which will have a “fresh, modern flare”. This new flavor of Jewish Music will consist of mainly Enlgish songs with a splash of Yiddish and Hebrew as well. Also in progress, is a fabulous new video being worked on as we speak so stay tuned…. And Get Ready to Rock!

From “Yehey” to “Lecha” to “Chizku” and now “Chai”! The Chevra has become one of the most popular groups to hit the scene. The Chevra launched in 2001 and after a short recent hiatus they return with three new members aboard, and are now in the final stages of their latest hit (due out right after the summer). Eli Gerstner, the group’s producer, has composed thousands of songs throughout the years. On this album he plans on displaying the best he has written yet. The Chevra will be using the latest technology and sounds to produce one phenomenal album.
Eli Gerstner has also been hard at work on his follow up solo album for the past few years. While it’s not quite done yet, it may be out sometime next year.

Two and a half years ago, TeeM Productions produced Modim Anachnu by an artist who was new but true to the scene. After much success he’s taking his upcoming album, Taussig 2, to a whole new extreme. The upcoming album by Shloime Taussig will feature 12 brand new songs as well as a bonus track with unique compositions by Yossi Green, Pinky Weber, Yitzy Waldner, Yitzchok Fuchs, Ruli Ezrachi, Lipa Schmeltzer, Eli Cohen, and Moti Illowitz. Arrangements on the album were done by some of the best arrangers in the field including Ruli Ezrachi, Shua Fried, Ruvi Banet, Ilya Lishinsky and Yitzy Berry. This masterpiece album which will hit shelves between Lag Baomer and Shavous, will have something for everyone. It will feature styles across the board from modern to Yeshiva through Chasidish. Taussig 2 may be the biggest production the “teem” has put out so far.

Who is the man who has been involved in the industry for many years, who is known for his chesed, and who stands behind one of the largest orchestras?? You’ve guessed it…. the gifted and entertaining Shloime Dachs. The good news is, Shloime is finally back in the studio working on a brand new solo album, slated for a summer release. The first taste of the album will come out before Shavous as a single, “Kabed Es Avicha”. The song composed by Leiby Fruchter and arranged by Yisroel Lamm will be special because it is a duet with Shloime and his son, Dovid. Dovid also composed a brand new “Modeh Ani” for this album. This is one you don’t want to miss!

New onto the scene is 20 year old, Yoni Zigelboum, who proves to be powerful, with a lot of potential. After being approached by his Rebbe in Yeshiva encouraging him to pursue a career in music, he was motivated to go forward. He then followed up by taking jobs at Chasunas, which gained him a reputation. He’s made other appearances as well and he’s really taking off. Yoni was able to obtain a high profile producer who was very impressed with him. While unable to disclose the name of the producer at this time, it is someone who has produced concerts and albums for some of the biggest names in the Jewish music industry. Yoni is currently hard at work on his debut album. What is unique about this album is each song will be composed by a brand new, virtually unknown composer. In fact, if you have a song of your own that you think Yoni might like, you can email it to yonismusic@gmail.com, for a chance of having your song being featured on the album. Yoni will also be going on a world tour visiting places such as Australia, Israel, France, Spain and England. On his tour he’ll be debuting some brand new songs as well as re-doing classic songs (with phenomenal rock-ballads). Stay tuned for updates on the world tour, the upcoming album, and a major announcement right before the summer.

It all started on a college campus in Washington Heights with a bunch of nice Jewish boys and their creativity. Since their success with Candelight, this group of boys took the world by storm, even grabbing the attention of the President of the United States. After appearing on national television, touring several countries around the world and putting out music videos which drew massive attention, this group wanted to show that there was more to them than just a group of quirky boys, singing in boxes on YouTube. To reflect this sentiment, The Maccabeats released their new album Out of the Box. Their new album features an array of different sounds from both the Jewish and secular world with covers of artists from Miami Boys Choir to Moshav through Andy Grammer. When they’re in the process of selecting songs, they choose songs with meaningful lyrics. These lyrics can be interpreted in a way which can represent an aspect of our relationship with Hashem. The Maccabeats take every opportunity that arises to invent new ideas. They are currently working on a few music videos which will be “out of the box” since they will not include holiday themes, but will be sure to excite their fans!
Also look out for the all new website: Maccabeats.com coming soon!

Shloime Gertner (who has become a household name) is currently in the middle stages of his upcoming production, Gertner 3. His sweet voice is as smooth as silk and just when you think he’s at his best, he gets better! This album will be another diamond in his collection. Gertner 3 will feature compositions by Baruch Chait, Pinky Weber and Yossi Green, with many arrangements by the one and only, Moshe Laufer. This treasure is expected to hit stores by the end of the year (before Rosh Hashana).

Dovid Stein emerged onto the scene approximately four years ago and has been in high demand ever since. His debut album, Melech, (produced by Eli Gerstner) has been a real hit and has given him a big name in the industry. Dovid’s been very involved these days performing at many simchas and events, with various orchestras.
While Dovid is not currently working on a full studio album, he is working on a couple of singles which will be released shortly after Sefirah. “K’Mayim”, the first single due out is composed by Yitzi Halon and will be produced by Donni Gross. The other one which will be released shortly there after, will be composed by Elimelech Blumstein and Produced by the extraordinary Avi Newmark. These singles are guaranteed “chart toppers” and will be a great way to get us back into the music!

This has been and will continue to be a very exciting year for Jewish Music!