Zehu Ze and T-Slam - The Face of the Nation

 

I used to like watching the torch-lighting ceremony marking the beginning of Independence Day celebrations, but I felt like I couldn't see it last night. In the past few years, it has become so political, organized by Transport Minister Miri Regev, with constant camera cuts to her seated next to Netanyahu and his wife. I heard that Netanyahu gave an election-style speech, in which he talked about returning all the hostages from Hamas captivity, without differentiating between those who were returned alive and those whose bodies were returned. I thought of the moving interview I saw with Rachel Goldberg-Polin, whose son Hersh was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th and was executed in August 2024, along with five other hostages. In the interview, Rachel talks about the day of the funeral and how she saw people in the streets carrying signs reading the word "sorry". I remember the anguish during that time. It wasn't just "we are sorry for your loss", it was "we are sorry that we didn't bring Hersh back sooner, before it was too late". We will always have enemies, but he should never have been kidnapped from a security-cleared music festival within Israel's borders.

This song was written in 1990, in response to Shimon Peres's attempt, and failure, to form a narrow government with the ultra-orthodox parties, in what became known as "the dirty trick". Reading the lyrics, this could have been written today, and it's not a surprise that Zehu Ze chose to perform it on their show last week, together with T-Slam, who are still rockers to their core.

He went out in the morning of a tiring summer's day
Kissed his wife, crossed the road

An elegant car, a skillful driver

Galloping to the capital - a new day for the small businessman

Places a call during the trip - party business

And worries about his part of the slice of the cake

The conversation streams, things were promised to him

For many years now, he hasn't represented those who voted for him

Documents for review, budgets for development
And cigar smoke out the open window

He says to a member of the party, "Just a moment Gedalia

Perhaps you'll be the Ambassador to Australia"

He observes the landscape of the nation he loved

So what if on the way, he lied and stole

His face is reflected in the window in the corner

His face is

The face of the nation...

The halls of power and the floors of bureaucracy

Budgets for Yeshivas at the cost of inflation

He cut in a minute three factories

And four hundred workers were made unemployed

Driving south in his car - bluish window blinds

He stopped for a visit to bereaved parents

He forgot he advocated for war

His face is

The face of the nation

He's important and well-connected and will continue, come what may

He is the one who will decide if there will be a war

He is the one who will determine your children's education

He is the one who will set procedures, and you'll lose your temper

In a fiery speech to an emotional crowd

Redeeming ground with sickle and scythe

Vote correctly and I implore you...

Give me power

Let me scream

Whatever I desire

Because I had

A land of milk and honey

Play music now...

And I don't understand what changed

If I'm the only idiot in the country,

Who is anxious about tomorrow and dreams of olive leaves

And wants to feel that my home is here

I caress your face, look out the window

And you smile within a dream

I love that you are like this and don't change

Your smile is

The face of the nation

Thank you to Moshe Kaye for the translation.

Ilanit and Doron Talmon - A Song for an Ordinary Day

 

Passover is the holiday of freedom, and to mark the holiday, the Kan 88 radio station aired three special programs, each one curated by a former hostage, giving them complete freedom to play whatever they wanted. Each show gave so much insight into their inner world. I loved Amit Soussana's picks with deep cuts that don't usually make it to the radio, and I was deeply moved by Yarden Bibas's selections. Yarden shared that the songs he chose have helped him in the past year, expressing emotions that he hasn't been able to describe in words. It was especially emotional to hear him say he would play Zakk Wylde's "I Thank You Child" on family car trips, and Ariel knew it was 'their song'. He played the song at the funeral of Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir, and lyrics from the song are inscribed on their tombstone: "It was you who made living all worthwhile, oh lovin' you it's the best". We will never forget them.

While Amit and Yarden stuck to specific genres, I loved how Guy Gilboa Dalal took us on a genre-spanning musical journey. He shared how Avenge Sevenfold's Buried Alive gave him strength during his captivity, and I can't help but shiver when I hear the lyrics "Hold on to faith as I dig another grave", knowing the hell he has been through and survived. Later in the show, he dedicated Avenge Sevenfold's Gunslinger, to his older brother, who had introduced him to the band when he was a kid. They had gone to the Nova Festival together with friends, and Guy knew before he was taken hostage that his brother was injured. "I didn't know what happened to my brother, I didn't know if my brother was alive, but I had faith. The song is about war, about the hardship, the loneliness, and the strong desire to return home to the person you love. When I got home, I discovered that my brother had the meaning of the song tattooed on his leg, as a symbol of our bond". In February 2025, when Tal Shoham and Or Wenkert were released from captivity, Guy had asked them to send songs to his family members, each song with its own special meaning and significance. He sent Gunslinger to his brother, Liad Meir's Sunglasses to his sister, Damien Jr Gong Marley's Medication to his dad, and Ilanit's A Song for an Ordinary Day to his mom. I was familiar with the classic song, but never really stopped to listen to the lyrics, beautifully written by Rachel Shapira. This moving performance is from last year and was dedicated to the families of the hostages. With all we've been through, I am comforted by the fact that our hostages have returned home, and it is always possible to find and to share the small joys of an ordinary day.

If I have strings, they play with vibration

If I have a worry, it is almost exposed

If I have love in me, it will speak quietly

If I have roots, they lengthen slowly

You see how suddenly I'm shivering

The wind often changes its direction

We tried to leave, but I know

That we still stay year after year

In our rooms, the sun is sketching

Lines and strips of light on the walls

Every morning, I collect for you

Small details, small joys of an ordinary day

Are you responding? Will you answer me?

Maybe my sounds get in your ears

Maybe you listen, maybe you are like me

I can see my face suddenly reflected in yours

If I have strings, they play trembling...

This ordinary day is a day of grace

And in its grace, these lines are written for you

Take my hand now, reconcile with me

On such an ordinary day, our paths meet

I used the help of this excellent translation by Boaz Lenn, featuring the original video, a timeless classic.

Vitarti - We All Lost / Your Own Drone

 

Vitarti are back! Here is what they wrote when they shared this first single from their new album back in October: "We All Lost - a new song. When we grew up in the 90s, for a moment, there was a euphoria of peace. One that was talked about, dreamed about. One that was just a touch away on the landline.

We All Lost is a lament for a childhood destroyed by a cruel reality. Cynical, painful, and sobering. One that our parents hoped to protect us from, one that we hope to protect from our children".

You promised me an olive branch by the end of the decade

Dressed up and excited, I waited in line

Peace, now

Mom, you said it wouldn't be dangerous here

Sitting, crying in the dark, calling the ERAN hotline again

What will be here, Dad? Is there a total victory yet?

I took four Clonex pills, I'll feel them soon

We are the children of Oslo 

Fall '93

A new Middle East and punk rock

You ruined my dreams

Because the dove exploded into pieces at Maxim

And I'm already used to seeing a thousand bodies on prime-time

Haim, Yavin

Mom, you promised back then that it would be great here

Sitting, crying in the dark, and ordering an expensive baguette

What will be here, Dad? Is there a total victory yet?

Getting dressed up for another evening, in the shelter

I scream but they don't hear

Time passes and there are more casualties

Bombs, tears, and fake pride

Helpless and scratching in my sleep

We all lost.

bfan.link/vitarti

Vitarti released their second single last month, about a week into the war: "A new song. Written two days ago, recorded and mixed yesterday. Not really, we're living in a two-and-a-half-year loop".

Let's fly from here to another place in time

A place where there are no more missiles

Let's fly from here, I packed on my own

But flights were canceled, I want to cry, I need an urgent rescue

Let's fly from here, but how?

And you listen to punk rock

And I to Yinon Magal

I sleep with my shoes on

And you with a light weapon

You deserve better than this, I swear, a long time ago, kus'emek already

I have a friend, Oded, a contract worker at Rafael

He organizes vacations to all the countries, the suitcases are a joke

You deserve your own drone

We'll go see Rancid

We'll live in northern Spain

Hug me around the waist

Hold my hand

Floating in the clouds

There are no more fears

On flying drones

We control its destiny

Flying to a new land

Where there is no contention and evil

Just you and me like back then

Just two bored people

bfan.link/katbam