Zion80, Bop Kabbalah

“A truly soulful experience” – The New York Times
Zion80 explores Jewish music – from Carlebach to Zorn and everything in between – through the lens of the Afrobeat funk master Fela Anikulapo Kuti. Led by Jon Madof (Rashanim, Matisyahu), the 11-piece band arranges Jewish melodies using the polyrhythmic intensity of Afrobeat, blended with the madness of the Downtown scene. Zion80's performances include the Village Vanguard, Krakow Jewish Culture Festival and Jazzfestival Saalfelden (Austria). Their most recent release on Tzadik Records is Adramelech: John Zorn's Book of Angels vol. 22.


Bop Kabbalah is guitarist/composer Ty Citerman's take on original Jewish jazz, featuring bass clarinetist Ken Thomson (Bang on a Can All-Stars, Asphalt Orchestra, Gutbucket), trumpeter Ben Holmes (Tarras Band, Slavic Soul Party), and drummer Adam D Gold (Universal Thump, Gutbucket). The group fuses klezmer, jazz, nigunim and modern classical music to create a fresh, original sound. 2014's Tzadik Records release received rave reviews (4 stars in Downbeat and the Sydney Morning Herald) and was hailed as "...one of the year's most arresting recordings..." by Jazztimes.