The BIG CROWN label has a penchant for finding and releasing odd takes on the soul genre from all sorts of places. You’ll remember their discovery of Indonesian band, Thee Marloes. Well, now, they’ve visited Germany via Turkey to release music on DERYA YILDIRIM AND GRUP ŞIMŞEK.
Derya Yildirim is the leader of the band! She’s the singer and plays a “saz” (a long-necked lute) while the band are Graham Mushnik and Antonin Voyant. The former plays the organ and synths; the latter guitar, bass and flute. It seems they have two albums to their name which they like to call “a blend of Anatolian soul, funk, folk and pop”. Big Crown have picked up on the Leon Michels’ tweaked ‘Cool Hand’ for single release.
It’s an odd sound for sure – not classic soul by any means but there’s a touch of blue-eyed soul about it – it’s breezy, twangy, riff laden and catchy. It’s sung in Turkish. Though born in Germany, Ms Yildirim says: “It’s really important to me because that’s the language I can really express myself in, it’s my emotional language”.
Intrigued? You can check it out via Big Crown.
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