No Beach Boys for us, at least not now. Here is the official notice received today:
“The Beach Boys have cancelled their appearance Saturday night, November 29, 2014 at Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv. The band looks forward to returning to the region as soon as possible. Ticket holders will receive refunds within 14 days.”
Why did they cancel? Well, they didn’t confide in me. Is it due to political pressure? Maybe. Perhaps they just don’t feel safe in this region. Sometimes I don’t feel very safe in this region, but it’s my home.
Should politics influence music? Maybe it should be the other way around. I wish music would influence politics. Music takes me deep into myself and lets me feel – beyond words, beyond what I can know or describe with my conscious mind. Music takes me out of myself and lets me feel the life around me, it connects me to everyone and everything.
There are bands who won’t perform in Israel, there are some who plan to come and then cancel. All I can say is: Israel is a great venue with warm audiences who love music. That’s what it should be about – music. So yes, I still love The Beach Boys. And yes, I hope that they will perform here someday.
