Tuna is back with a moving song that manages to capture the feelings of instability and uncertainty that we've all felt in one way or another in the past six months. Tuna being Tuna, he also offers much-needed comfort during this challenging time, which in many ways feels more difficult than the chaotic weeks right after October 7th. I posted a while back Tuna's mega-hit 'This Too Shall Pass' and recently discovered that it's one of the songs on a playlist created by Carmel Gat's friends, of songs that she loved and would share with them. Carmel, an occupational therapist, was taken hostage ..read more

I've been thinking of this song ever since it was released in January, and I've been thinking of it in the past few weeks. I know it was written during a time when many soldiers were killed while protecting the country, but when I hear the sadness in Assaf Amdursky's voice I think of all the innocent lives lost in Gaza. Too many flowers, too many open wounds.  I thought about it again today when I heard the tragic news that the hostage Elad Katzir from Kibbutz Nir Oz was murdered in captivity. His father Rami was murdered on October 7th and his mother Hanna was also kidnapped and was re ..read more

I remember finding out through a moving video posted by Lola Marsh that they are Noa Argamani's favorite band and her favorite song is "She's a rainbow". This was on Noa's 26th birthday on October 12th, more than three months ago, and she is still held captive by Hamas with no hostage deal in sight. After several delays, the academic year started earlier this month, including at Ben-Gurion University, where Noa is a third-year engineering student. I can't even begin to imagine what her family is going through and what it is like for her friends to start the academic year without her, wi ..read more

It's been a tough day. We woke up to the news that four IDF soldiers were killed fighting in Gaza. I quickly checked to make sure there was no one I knew. I checked again at noon when five more names of fallen soldiers were released, all reservists who had stopped their lives to fight for us. Later in the evening I heard their stories and saw footage from a few of the funerals that took place today, parents mourning their 19-year-old son, a young woman mourning her partner: "We were supposed to create a family together, now I have joined the family of the bereaved".  One glimmer of ligh ..read more

Zehu Ze was one of the first shows back on during the war, I remember how the first episodes back on sensitively dealt with the situation, hosting evacuated children from the Gaza envelope, with skits that were less satirical than usual, and of course, the songs. The songs have become the heart of the show, with touching musical interpretations that always feel like the perfect choice. The first episode back ended with a moving version of 'Darkenu', with the lyrics, "It's not easy, our path is not easy/and your eyes sometimes are so sad/More blossoming fields are before us/More high mountain ..read more

After a nerve-racking few days since the hostage deal was first announced, we finally saw the first group of 13 Israelis released. 10 Thai nationals and 1 national from the Philippines were also released yesterday in a separate deal. We were so anxious about the deal and whether it would go through as planned, I can't even begin to imagine what it is like for the families of the hostages, many of whom don't know yet if their loved ones will be included in the groups being released in the next few days. When I saw the images of the released hostages together with my family we were overjoyed w ..read more

You said that after the rains It would be better, it would be more pleasant You said that after the holidays We'll return to routine, we'll return like adults We've passed the rains and Sukkot And everything remains the same and I'm the same idiot You lied because it's now after Sukkot And if you were right, then why do I feel like crying? This world stinks from New York to Rafah Wherever you go, you'll always find an enemy These are homeland birth pangs, and I want to leave Whether black or white, we'll all die racists You told me that I'm the best and that I have no competitors And that ..read more

One week since everything changed. Last Saturday I woke up to sirens at around 6:30 in the morning and rushed to the building shelter. Here we go again, I thought, preparing myself for another round of fighting until there was a ceasefire. But it quickly became clear that there would be no ceasefire in the near future. I turned on the news and was shocked by the images of Hamas terrorists in the streets of Sderot and Ofakim - how did they get there? And where was the army?? The news reporters seemed just as shocked and confused as it slowly became clear that Hamas was taking control of seve ..read more

I had a feeling I might make an appearance here again, especially if current events here were being covered extensively in the international press, but I never imagined it would be under these circumstances when the country is (still) under the threat of leaving democracy.  I published my last post before the November 1 elections, but it was already clear that either we were going into another election cycle or Netanyahu's camp would win, probably by a slim majority. I voted for Meretz yet again, quite reluctantly to be honest, and hoped for the best. The right's landslide victory caug ..read more

Well, after an unexpectedly long hiatus, I'm back for one last post. I've had a lot of fun keeping this up over the past 12(!) years and forcing myself to discover new music beyond the playlist hits, while along the way interacting with lovely people from across the globe. I might eventually decide to take a closer look at the musical gems from the past decade once more time has passed, or to dig deeper into tunes from other periods, as I have occasionally done, but for now, I'll leave you with Gon Ben Ari and Zulat Choir, taken from the stellar album 'Yesh'. ♥ Between the evenings in high ..read more