Aşk

Psychedelic Anatolian folk-rock band Altın Gün return to traditional sources for their latest album while still managing to produce something so fresh and invigorating that it doesn't feel retrospective or musty. All ten tracks are versions of Turkish folk tunes and songs with a 1970s psych twist, involving traditional instruments such as saz alongside synths and guitar – all of it drenched in plenty of wah-wah and fuzz. The Turkish guys who run my local corner shop absolutely love it (particularly the love ballad ‘Leylim Ley’), which I find reassuring.

Aşk slams into earshot with the pounding beat, spacey synth pads and distinctively Turkish guitar riffs of ‘Badi Sabah Olmadan’. There are some slower numbers, like ‘Güzelliğin on Para Etmez’, but the record is mainly a sweaty, ecstatic affair. This album was recorded live onto tape and something else in its sound, as well as the stunning artwork, is reminiscent of an Anatolian The Comet is Coming. Many modern interpretations of traditional material achieve something beautiful, soulful, prescient; but not many result in anything quite as, well, achingly cool as this.