Duo Boogie Balagan creates ‘PalestIsrael’ through music

Boogie Balagan was formed in 2004, when Azri and Gabri’s paths crossed in Paris. The most notable aspect of this duo, aside from the fact that neither are French though both live in France, is that one is Israeli and the other Palestinian. We, though, don’t know which is which, because neither of them wants to tell us. In fact, Azri even comments, “If you can’t figure out which one of us is from where, that shows we have succeeded.”

Both musicians see this as a first step towards peace, and they talk of PalestIsrael at every opportunity they get. We asked them just where this PalestIsrael might be. Azri begins to speak. He asserts it is a village where neither passports nor flags are recognized and where absolutely everyone is warmly welcomed. The most important characteristic one needs to possess in order to enter this village is simply being a human being. And though this village started off with only two residents, it is now a crowded village, thanks to Boogie Balagan’s music.

As it is, one sign of the intent for peace that their songs carry is the many languages contained in just one line of one song: Arabic, Hebrew, English, French, Greek, Spanish, and so on. Here is how they sum up this unusual mix of languages: “We speak a language of humanity.”

Boogie Balagan began its musical life by making covers of Muddy Waters songs with jazz and oriental pieces, and nowadays boasts a musical sound that Turkish listeners are accustomed to from Turkish rocker Erkin Koray.

We asked what Boogie Balagan means. They answer that “boogie” is in reference to a snappy rhythm, while “balagan” is a slang word commonly heard in Israel. Here’s how Azri explains balagan: “Well, I mean balagan is something you hear when someone’s saying something like ‘Let’s go make some noise, go to that party, mix things up!’ We decided to use this word to reflect our message and our music, the way we blend styles and come up with a musical mix.”

It does seem that every day across the world, Boogie Balagan is picking up more and more fans. And they themselves go to different countries around the world and are always learning new things about music from those countries, which they then add to their own music. At this point though, Boogie Balagan has only one album, called “Lamentation Walloo.” This is because they don’t work with any music labels. But here’s the good news, their second album is on the way, including a song about “falafel,” a food claimed both by Israelis and Palestinians.

We learn from Azri and Gabri that despite the fact that both were born in Israel, they never been invited to perform in France by any Jewish or French organizations. They are sometimes invited by some Muslim groups in France, though, to participate in certain radio programs. In fact, Azri and Gabri joined in an aid campaign for people affected by the attack on Gaza, even giving a concert. They both assert that “being supported by Muslims does mean that we don’t feel too alone.”

Their greatest message is about peace. Azri notes his belief that actually, such work is a duty for those involved in the arts, and those who can reach different factions of society easily. “If artists, writers, film directors and the like give up on working for peace, who will be left to do this? If we give up on hoping, there is nothing left but politics and war. This might appear somewhat naive and utopian, but really, life goes on, and we have to keep our hopes up for the sake of our children. There is no other world that we have. The ‘flower power generation’ that came about in the 1960s, known as ‘hippies,’ used to know this, and talk so much of love and its power, people would laugh at them. But actually, in the end, the hippies were able to hold meetings and rallies that ultimately brought the Vietnam War to an end. We do not make our music simply for entertainment purposes. We are obliged to add our messages to our music,” Azri says.

Having heard Azri talking like this, one begins to ponder whether Israeli and Palestinian people really have personal problems with one another. Azri says that actually, in an ironic sense, the problems between these two peoples are rooted in “the fact that they resemble each other so much.”

Gabri compares the situation to someone looking in the mirror and rejecting the image they see in their own reflection. Azri talks about how once, when he was little, he went with his father to sell watermelons in Gaza. He notes that later, though, propaganda successfully took over, and nowadays, the youths growing up in both Gaza and Israel are almost forced to be counter to one another. Especially, he says, because of the wall. He compares Gaza, because of the wall, to “an enormous open air prison.”

The pair believes that the real solution to the problems at hand lies in communication and both sides actually remaining in contact. Also, they are committed to the idea that, no matter what, no matter where people are from, the harm being inflicted on both Israeli and Palestinian children must not be accepted by the world.

Both Azri and Gabri say they were saddened when Yasser Arafat died but that they both support Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Their real dream, though, in short, is to see separate flags for both the Israeli and Palestinian states, but a Jerusalem over which many different flags are able to flutter. They believe that only in this way will Jerusalem be able to become a world center for peace. In very sweet Turkish, Gabri marks the end of our conversation by referring to words once spoken by Nelson Mandela, who said, “There is nothing as beautiful as when one people stretch out their hands to help another people.”