ZETS!

If the idea of a Yiddish language album seems a little old worldy, you probably haven't yet heard ZETS!. This second release from 22-piece Australian big band YID! is anything but bound to a single time or place. Setting the tone, the opening ‘Overture 1’ is a five-minute burst of… almost everything. As avant-garde meets light-techno, the addition of gently-distorted spoken Yiddish feels something akin to Laurie Anderson doing Weimar Cabaret. I mean this positively, of course. Continuing through 70s-esque funk-jazz, then tightly synchronised Balkan-inspired melody, the piece briefly descends into free improvisation. Its opening lyrics (translated) provide a neat summary: ‘We are back in the Old World/ Where Dybbuks and golems can still be found… Although… in the latest fashion.’

Throughout the record, Yiddish vocals weave through sonic layers ranging from indie-folk to klezmer, industrial to jazz. There are even some sheep samples in there somewhere. Conceptually, the album does a great job of evoking the tension between tradition and progress, balancing historical reflection, modern day commentary, and the art of not-taking-oneself-too-seriously. Ambitious and creatively-executed, YID! recontextualise traditional sounds, songs and stories into a collection that should appeal to diverse listeners, and the growing Yiddish revival.