The first time I heard Tal Fogel she was a blonde, and I was on my way to somewhere else, but the music drew me in, to Ashan Hazman in Beer Sheva, where she was doing a sound check. I couldn’t stay, but heard enough to know that I wanted to hear more.
Our paths met again this week at the Ozen Bar in Tel Aviv, and this is a good time to listen to Tal Fogel. The singer-songwriter released her debut album Arimot Shel Halomot (Heaps of Dreams) last April, and is already working on the next one – she’s on fire. Performing with her were Amir Groman on bass and Nadav Gorali on drums. This crew are all bandmates from Marioneta Sol and Groman is musical producer of Fogel’s album, the rapport between them gets a good vibe going right from the start.
Fogel is a person of many aspects, on this night she was priestess of a punk cathedral with a shaved head and clean, ascetic lines. The songs are precise, emotional investigations with surreal imagery, her high clear voice floating wraith-like over the edgy electric guitar and drums. Singing, she stood almost motionless at the mic, looking straight ahead, perhaps toward some distant view that only she can see. For someone who sings of love more lost than found, Tal Fogel smiles a lot. Between songs she talked simply and directly with the audience, acknowledging her nerves and excitement in an almost childlike voice with a hint of shyness.
The concert was an even mix of songs from her album and new songs – all very compelling, communicating feeling beyond words. In other words: you don’t have to understand Hebrew to enjoy her music. Fogel’s guest for this evening was Luna Abu Nassar, and these two guitarists were great together onstage. They sang Kadur Poreach (balloom), a tender tune from Tal’s album, perfect for these airy voices. Then Luna led on one of her originals in Hebrew, Tsaleket (scar) with a hip hop Middle Eastern feel, and then the Arabic Mishwar, in a sound more electric than the album version.
I immediately fell in love with one of the new songs – HaHalom Nitka (the dream was cut off), from the very first notes: “I’m on my way home and the house is empty.” Later in the night, another song performed solo took my breath away with its eerie surreal words and sound, as she sang of walking among the dead. HaDvarim HaChi Tovim, the closing song of the evening, which also closes the album, was the perfect end to a beautiful evening – talking about the “best things,” and how much we wish they never would have to end.
See some more photos from the concert on Midnight East’s facebook page.
Future concerts: Tal Fogel will be performing with Shirly Kones on January 19, 2015 at 21:00, at HaIsha Hachi Yafa BaIr, 54 Ahad Ha’am Street, Tel Aviv. DJs Itamar Bernstein & Nir Gorali before & after the concert. Admission free! Link to event page here.
Links: Tal Fogel website, bandcamp, facebook page
Luna Abu Nassar bandcamp, facebook page
Shirly Kones bandcamp
