Electro Morocco were an

Israeli American , native_name_lang = , image = , caption = , population = 110,000–150,000 , popplace = New York metropolitan area, Los Angeles metropolitan area, Miami metropolitan area, and other large metropolitan are ...

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

band from

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Formed in 2007 by members of Nanuchka, they released two EPs, ''Electro Morocco'' (2008) and ''Low Ride'' (2010) and were featured on the

Shemspeed Erez Safar is an American DJ, producer and songwriter who records under the names Diwon and h2the. He is CEO of Bancs Media, an American production company specializing in music and video production; Studio Bancs, a creative art space; and She ...

compilation album ''Sephardic Music Festival Vol. 1'' (2010). They remixed and produced songs for

Y-Love Yitz Jordan (born January 5, 1978), better known by his stage name Y-Love, is an American hip hop artist. An Orthodox Jew, Jordan was formerly Hasidic.Jerry Portwood"Y-Love is Ready for Love,"'' Out'', May 15, 2012. He is a web developer, activis ...

DeScribe Shneur Hasofer is a Hasidic musician known as DeScribe. Hasofer's musical style has been characterized as "Hasidic hip-hop," "Hasidic rap" and "Hasidic R&B". Background Hasofer was born to a Chabad Hasidic family in Melbourne, Australia. Hasof ...

, and

Eprhyme Eden Daniel Pearlstein (born February 19, 1980), better known by his stage name Eprhyme (pronounced "E-Prime"), is an American Jewish rapper and hip hop production, producer based in Brooklyn, New York (state), New York. While attending The Ever ...

, and were noted for their unusual blend of electronic,

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

, and

Middle Eastern music The various nations of the region include the Arabic-speaking countries of the Middle East, the Iranian traditions of Persia, the Jewish music of Israel and the diaspora, Armenian music, Kurdish music, Azeri Music, the varied traditions of Cypriot ...

History

Electro Morocco was formed in 2007 in

. Founding members

Yula Beeri Yula Beeri, born Yuli Yael Be'eri, is an Israeli composer, musician, and performer. She has been performing music in New York City for the past ten years. Yula is the founder of the music and arts collective Yula & The Extended Family (YXFM), ...

(previously of

The World/Inferno Friendship Society The World/Inferno Friendship Society (also referred to as World Inferno, or Inferno) was an American band from Brooklyn, New York. Its style merged punk, soul, klezmer and jazz, while its collective membership featured horns, piano and guitar ...

and

Star Fucking Hipsters Star Fucking Hipsters is an American punk rock band from New York City who have released albums on Fat Wreck Chords and Alternative Tentacles records. They have been called a "punk supergroup" and feature members from numerous notable bands in ...

), Roy Gurel,

Shlomi Lavie Shlomi Lavie is an Israeli-born American-based musician, best known as the drummer for Marcy Playground. He has also played with various other bands, including Nanuchka and Electro Morocco in New York City, and formerly with The Magical Mystery ...

, and Assaf Spector had previously been in the rock band Nanuchka together. The band's debut EP, ''Electro Morocco'', was released by

on April 22, 2008. Later that year, Lavie left the group and joined the band Marcy Playground. In January 2009, the band performed at the

92nd Street Y 92nd Street Y, New York (92NY) is a cultural and community center located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the corner of East 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Founded in 1874 as the Young Men's Hebrew Association, the ...

as part of the Oyhoo Jewish Music Festival alongside

Dov Rosenblatt Dov Rosenblatt (born 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer, composer, and teacher. Currently based in Los Angeles, California, he is best known as the lead singer of the Jewish rock band Blue Fringe, who were credited along with Mosh ...

, and

Diwon Erez Safar is an American DJ, producer and songwriter who records under the names Diwon and h2the. He is CEO of Bancs Media, an American production company specializing in music and video production; Studio Bancs, a creative art space; and She ...

. In December, they joined Shemspeed's fifth annual Sephardic Music Festival alongside

Pharaoh's Daughter Pharaoh's Daughter is an American Jewish world music band from New York City. Formed in 1995 by Basya Schechter, their music is a mix of American folk, Jewish klezmer, and Middle Eastern sounds. Schechter is currently a member of the alte ...

Yair Dalal Yair Dalal ( he, יאיר דלאל; born 25 July 1955) is an Israeli musician of Iraqi-Jewish descent. His main instruments are the oud and the violin, and he also sings as accompaniment. He composes his own music and draws on Arab and Jewish tra ...

Sarah Aroeste Sarah Aroeste is an American singer and composer.Mordechai Shinefield"Monday Music: The Face of Ladino Dream-Pop,"''The Forward'', May 21, 2012. Her music is often referred to as "feminist Ladino rock."Felix Contreras and Catalina Maria Johnson, h ...

, and

Smadar Levi Smadar Levi is an Israeli singer. Levi was born in Sderot Israel to a family that had immigrated from Morocco and Tunisia. She has dedicated her career to reviving and reinvigorating the spirit of Convivencia ''Convivencia'' (, "living together ...

. In early 2010, they appeared at the Boston Jewish Music Festival alongside

Flory Jagoda Flory Jagoda (born Flora Papo; December 21, 1923January 29, 2021) was a Bosnian Jewishborn American guitarist, composer and singer-songwriter. She was known for her composition and interpretation of Sephardic songs, Judeo-Espanyol (Ladino) song ...

, Ruth Dolores Weiss, Osvaldo Golijov,

Golem A golem ( ; he, , gōlem) is an animated, anthropomorphic being in Jewish folklore, which is entirely created from inanimate matter (usually clay or mud). The most famous golem narrative involves Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the late 16th-century ...

, and the Klezmer Conservatory Band. They also contributed their song "Joe Pill" to the Shemspeed compilation ''Sephardic Music Festival Vol. 1'', and released a second EP, ''Low Ride'', accompanied by the single "Sweetly Down". The group has been inactive since 2012, with the members pursuing various other projects.

Musical style

Electro Morocco's style of

combined elements of

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

, hip hop,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, and

, earning comparisons to Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A. as well as hip-hop groups

Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo (rapper), Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie (singer ...

and Far East Movement.

Discography

;EPs *''Electro Morocco EP'' (April 22, 2008;

/Blue Jay Way) *''Low Ride EP'' (March 24, 2010; Shemspeed/Blue Jay Way) ;Music videos *"Joe Pill" (2008; ''Electro Morocco EP'') *"Sweetly Down" (2010; ''Low Ride EP'') ;Production credits *Shemspeed MCs vs. Electro Morocco – "Boom Selecta" (feat.

, and

Kosha Dillz Rami Matan Even-Esh ( he, רמי מתן אבן-אש; born August 26, 1981), known professionally as Kosha Dillz, is an Israeli-American rapper.Chris Faraone"MC pals' flows are Kosha,"'' Boston Herald'', August 15, 2008.Y-Love Yitz Jordan (born January 5, 1978), better known by his stage name Y-Love, is an American hip hop artist. An Orthodox Jew, Jordan was formerly Hasidic.Jerry Portwood"Y-Love is Ready for Love,"'' Out'', May 15, 2012. He is a web developer, activis ...

and

) (2011; ''

Dopestylevsky ''Dopestylevsky'' is the second studio album by Jewish rapper Eprhyme, released on April 26, 2011 by K Records. It is notable as the label's first hip-hop album in a decade, as K Records is typically known for punk rock, punk and indie rock. video ...

''; K) ;Remixes *

and

– "Make It" (Electro Morocco remix) (2009; ''The Change EP''; Shemspeed) *

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...

– " One Day" (Electro Morocco remix) (2010; Shemspeed) *DeScribe – "Modern Day Moses" (Electro Morocco remix feat. Shmoolik (2010; ''Harmony EP''; Shemspeed) *Electro Morocco – "Joe Pill" (remix) (2010) *Electro Morocco – "Set" (remix) (2010) *Y-Love – "The Takeover" (Electro Morocco remix feat.

Andy Milonakis Andrew Michael Milonakis (; born January 30, 1976) is an American actor, comedian, rapper, and streamer. He is best known for his work on ''The Andy Milonakis Show'', a sketch comedy series that aired on MTV and MTV2 from 2005 to 2007. Other no ...

and TJ Di Hitmaker) (2012; Shemspeed) ;Compilation appearances *''Sephardic Music Festival Vol. 1'' – "Joe Pill" (2010; Shemspeed)

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.electromorocco.wordpress.com Israeli electronic music groups Electronic music groups from New York (state) Record producers from New York (state) Jewish hip hop record producers