Ex-Friendly
"Sababa 5 are a band that have found their own peculiar lane. Their previous releases hinted at what they wanted to be but their debut album spotlights what they are… a serious contender in the world of instrumental funk." Full review here: www.truthandliesmusic.com/magazine/sababa-5-sababa-5-batov-records-a-reviewFavorite track: Lizarb.
Cosmographer
Memorable psych-groovy tunes from this Israeli combo. The type of record to throw on any time of the day and get your spirits lifted! The musicianship is outstanding, but I have to give special mention to Amir Sadot, who brings it with some real monster bass lines.
Favorite track: Yurika Walks.
Global Riddims
I keep on playing this album over and over again. One of the best albums of the year. I will play it on several occasions on my Global Riddims show. Big up Sababa 5 and Batov
tikabasamuzik
What a fantastic fusion of tunes slapping each other in perfect harmony. You delve into a fantasy rhythmic world of mesmerizing tunes. I just LOVED This album! Breathtaking!
Sababa 5 finally deliver their long-promised, and self-titled album of original instrumentals, built around the band’s distinct mix of Middle Eastern psych, funk and disco groove.
Sababa 5’s knack for intricate grooves and catchy melodies have led to a series of acclaimed singles, from fresh takes on classic melodies to vocal collaborations, championed by the BBC’s Gilles Peterson, Cerys Mathews, and Gideon Coe in the UK, and Radio Nova and FIP, in France, whilst they gradually found their own contemporary sound, creating original music together that could stand up on its own across a whole album.
Across these eight songs, the group blends the Afro disco, reggae, jazz, funk and a plethora of Middle Eastern traditions, whilst traveling time and space, drawing a musical, cultural and geographical line from Somalia to Iran, via Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt and Turkey, from the late 70s & early 80s to today. Thus Sababa 5 create a unique psychedelic groove that builds on the approach that the likes of the Daptones have taken to working independently, writing, producing and recording original music, with their own modern take on 70s soul and funk.
Stand outs include “Malca” (a girl’s name that means “queen”). Built around broken synth lines, a languid East Africa meets Anadolu psych groove and vintage organ licks, the instrumental peaks a transformative chord change, shooting it into the stratosphere.
The carnivalesque “Lizarb” (“Brazil” backwards), raises the tempo and temperature. The piece kicks off with a guitar-led call-and-response before a synth-led melody lifts everything to another level. Topped off before the end by a beautiful wah-wah meets psychedelic Mizrahi style guitar solo over a pulsating drum and groove line, demanding a physical response.
“Habedil” (“the idiot” in Hebrew), is named for the innocent, child-like synths that lead off towards the start, whilst the bass and guitar riff repetitively, crafting an irresistible groove before dovetailing into an epic disco synth vamp.
With this, their debut, self-titled album, Sababa 5 are ready to take a seat among the most exciting and original instrumental-based groups across the globe, with an exciting and distinct approach to groove, sound and melody.
credits
released November 4, 2022
Guitar - Ilan Smilan
Bass - Amir Sadot
Drums - Raz Man
Keys - Eitan Drabkin
Percussion - Oded Aloni
Recorded at Eilat Studios April 2021
Mix by Ilan Smilan
Master by Doug Krebs
Artwork by Riccardo Corda
Every track is Anatolian fire. If you’ve arrived here by chance, it’s not by chance. You were destined to discover the ecstatic psychedelic joy of this record and to snap it up before the last 11 are sold Gareth Fitzpatrick