Oi Va Voi

London-based collective Oi Va Voi makes it hard to pin them down -- while their music easily allows for such diverse labels as "dance," "rock," "electronica," and "world music" to be applied to them, none of these labels describes the sound of the band to the fullest. Oi Va Voi was able to achieve this through a rather unique combination of cultural and ethnic backgrounds of its bandmembers, with each of them bringing something original to the table. Rock & roll and Jewish music, dance beats and klezmer, Eastern European horns and trip-hop sensibilities -- all these elements co-exist in the music of Oi Va Voi, creating a dense and exciting whole that sounds like little else out there. Oi Va Voi (which is Yiddish for "Oh, dear God," though at certain occasions bandmembers hinted at the fact that literal translation is a bit raunchier) came together in late '90s. Founding members Nik Ammar (guitars, vocals), Josh Breslaw (drums, percussion), Leo Bryant (bass), Steve Levi (clarinet, vocals), Lemez Lovas (trumpet, vocals), and Sophie Solomon (violin) had their backgrounds in truly diverse music outfits, yet this diversity didn't stop them from trying to create something of their own together. The title of their very first, self-released record pretty much gave away what the band was trying to achieve -- it was called Digital Folklore (and had since become a valued collectors' item). Vibrant live shows played around England earned Oi Va Voi a very strong reputation, and in 2002 they were nominated for BBC Radio 2 World Music Awards solely on the strength on their performances. Soon after that, KT Tunstall joined the band on vocals, and Oi Va Voi released their "proper" debut, Laughter Through Tears, in 2004 via Outcaste Records. The album deftly showcased their potential --...