Sometimes, the only criteria for assessing “good music” is that the music sounds good. And this sounds really good to me. Sharing a common language is not necessary for a band’s music to cross over when it captures a splendid sense of wistfulness and melancholia the way Israeli rock trio Vaadat Charigim does on its video for the single “Odisea”; a marvelously dreamy sepia-toned journey of a young girl riding her bike through the mysteriously deserted streets of Tel Aviv on what could be any late Summer afternoon. A subtle, post-apocalyptic vibe develops as the video progresses, especially when you consider that Tel Aviv is the second most densely populated city in Israel. And while the final “money shot” is somewhat unnecessary, the clip’s brief red and blue highlights seem to indicate that you might see something slightly hidden if you popped on a pair of 3-D glasses. (Hey, why not try it if you have a pair laying around the house?)

While Vaadat Charigim is apparently being lumped into a “Shoe Gaze” category by rock critics, the music sounds to me to be too lush, to the point of being almost fugue-like, to fall firmly into that category. Vaadat Charigim remind me very much of another excellent Israeli band, Rockfour, who sing in English but still manage to maintain an identifying sonic vibe that indicates they aren’t from around these parts. The group’s no-doubt excellent debut album, The World Is Well Lost, was released on November 12th, 2013 via Burger Records (cassette), Warm Ratio (vinyl), and Israeli label ANOVA (CD/digital). Find out more about Vaadat Charigim at This Link. Enjoy!

Vaadat Charigim are a trio consisting of Juval Haring (guitar+vocals), Yuval Guttman (drums) and Dan Fabian Bloch (bass). Photo by Goni Riskin.