Words by Justin Turford
After a bunch of highly collectable double A-side seven inchers for the always excellent Batov Records, Sababa 5 finally released an album of original compositions late in 2022 and the eponymously titled album is spooky instrumental funk of the highest order.
Tel Aviv based they may be but the band’s unique take on funk absorbs musical influences from across the SWANA region with East African (Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan), Turkish and Persian melodic stylings and motifs all finding their place in their tight psychedelic grooves. The five players are so slick and well-drilled it feels like there’s never a note or hit out of (the right) place on these tracks but the end result contains a certain wooziness, the fusion of influences creating a cosmic otherworldliness.
Opener ‘Banga’ is a model of what is to follow. A potently simple rhythm section allied with a subtle chopping rhythm guitar is the bedrock for Eitan Drabkin to propel the song along with his highly melodic and ghostly music box organ lines. The production is warm, fat and contemporary but the feel is 70s and 80s in many ways. The keys are reminiscent of Niger’s organ wizard Mamman Sani at times, at others the impression left is the wild precision of some Turkish or African disco hitters. Let’s not ignore the rest of the band. Drummer Raz Man is an absolute in-the-pocket beast! Alongside his incredible bass partner Amir Sadot, nothing is added that doesn’t need to be there. The groove on ‘Malca’ exemplifies their rhythmic partnership beautifully with a backbeat/bassline combination that The Headhunters would be proud of. This is the 2020s though so less is more, the breakdowns stripped to a simple snare hit, no frills required. Again the super-catchy keyboard line is the defining image but the rhythm section (that also includes percussionist Oded Aloni) and Ilan Smilan’s exemplary guitar work spurs on the deadly groove.
Sababa 5 photo by Vera Bello
‘Lizarb’ (‘Brazil’ backwards) doesn’t sound Brazilian at all but it is a sunshine bright dancefloor mover with an ace call-and-response intro and a devastatingly funky bassline. I’ve mentioned this in reviews before but the surprising global success of Texan band Khruangbin seems to have had a huge influence on a number of musicians and I suspect that Sababa 5 haven’t been left untouched. This tune in particular harbours some of Khruangbin’s sound but if anything, they’ve upped the funk and the retro spaceship organ and Ilan’s Mizrahi melodies surges the song into a new world!
‘Showroom 180’ grooves along like a desert bound Metronomy, whilst ‘Habedil’ keeps it cosmic with simple repetitive riffs relentlessly driving forward before a cheeky Afro-disco take-off at the end. ‘Yurika Walks’ starts all deep soul with an uncluttered breakbeat and a classic Stax Records like guitar before descending into a moody slab of cinematic melancholy. ‘Keyf’ (listen at top) is the most intricate song on the album with outstanding playing by everyone involved. Swirling keys, razor tight drumming and bass, and Ilian’s sensitive fretwork illuminating this glorious piece of music. Album closer ‘Kumkum 3’ is seemingly constructed from two entirely different emotions. The verse aches with that particularly 70s European soundtrack sorrow of rain soaked streets and broken love affairs, the chorus, however, is a leap into hope with bubbling disco inflections and a (just about) celebratory air of release.
Sababa 5 are a band that have found their own peculiar lane. Their previous releases hinted at what they wanted to be but their debut album spotlights what they are… a serious contender in the world of instrumental funk. 9/10