Emok warned to keep mum about their background
Jewish Telegraph, May 2005
RISING rock band Emok were warned by their distribution company not to mention their Jewish or Israeli backgrounds when promoting their album in certain areas of America.
The Israel-born trio were told that the Mid-West and southern states of America were quite antisemitic and their record sales could be damaged.
Bass player and vocalist Itai Asseo, guitarist and vocalist Ofer Tiberin and drummer Liron Peled formed in Israel but moved to America seven years ago to find fame.
Liron explained: “The band formed around 1995 when I was 15. Ofer and Itai knew each other for a number of years but I joined after meeting Ofer. We met at a bus terminal when were both going to the same music festival.
“We spent four days together at the Red Sea Festival and became close friends. When we played music together there was an immediate chemistry.”
Liron grew up near Tzfat while the other two lived all over Israel.
“It was a lot of fun to be in a band at 15,” Liron said. “But we took it very seriously. We were going to be super famous as soon as we could.
“We booked shows in Tel Aviv including at a club owned by Giora Shpigler. He really liked our music and offered to manage us. He is still our manager today.”
As their reputation in Israel grew, Emok toured considerably and landed the support slot with The Prodigy when they visited the country.
Liron said: “In Israel we were independent. A lot of people helped us by producing our recordings for free. People were excited to see a band like us playing in Israel.”
But he added: “It is close to impossible to make a living from music in Israel because the country is so small. And people have other things to deal with instead of going to buy CDs.
“In America you can just keep touring and never actually finish. So we decided to move to New York and leave everything behind.”
The trio, whose English was not great at the time, moved into a small apartment in Manhattan and worked in the same restaurant.
“It brought us closer together,” Liron said, adding: “Once we arrived in America we had to lose a few of our illusions. We didn’t realise how hard it would be to make it. Every show had to be amazing.”
Emok were lucky to enlist the help of Ron St Germain, who had mixed Soundgarden, U2, Creed and Red Hot Chilli Peppers.
“We approached him and offered to pay him to produce us,” Liron explains. “But he said he’d do it for free and only expect payment if our record made a profit. He believed in us so much and we worked closely for a while.
“Unfortunately, the recordings became just a demo for legal reasons, but it really helped us.”
Emok were then flown to Los Angeles by Rick Rubin, one of the most famous music producers in the world.
Liron said: “He was curious about us. He had heard the demo and wanted to see us. We played a showcase for him and he seemed excited but nothing concrete came out of it.
“So we decided to do our own thing. We approached Wrong Records in New York to finance our album but they refused. Once we had recorded it, we played it to them and they loved it. We produced and arranged it ourselves. Ofer went to production school while Itai is a graphic designer.”
The album, Shove Your Head into the Ground and Feed It to the Earth, was released to critical acclaim in America earlier this year. It is now being released in the UK and is already getting favourable reviews.
Liron said: “We have been concentrating on the US market but it has been good to get positive feedback from Europe. Apparently the album is doing really well in Iceland.
“A promoter over there happened to come across us and started to promote it off his own back.”
In America, Emok have been out on the road with a number of top bands in their field, including The Dillinger Escape Plan, Adema and American Head Charge.
“It’s been an honour to share the stage with them,” Liron said.
The band’s name translates as ‘Your Mama,’ although Liron explains that Emok comes from a Hebrew expression that “it is best not to mention. It explains the intensity and emotion of the music”.
He adds that Emok don’t want to take sides in the political debate in Israel but “we want to express an opinion, like on the song Piece of Land. It says how absurd war is in general and how war is not about what people want or need but is more about money and power.
“In a way you can see what drives people to do certain things, like become suicide bombers. Half of Israelis would be happy to give up land and resources for peace.”
Liron said the group likes to go back to Israel at least once a year — but normally more times.
“We miss our family, friends and the country, because it is so beautiful,” he said. “But it is so easy to get to from America.”
Emok are hoping to tour the UK in the summer or autumn.
To find out more about Emok visit http://emok.net/
