Moshiach Oi!

Moshiach Oi!
Origin Long Beach, New York, USA
Genres Jewish music
Hardcore punk
Years active 2008–present
Labels Shemspeed, Shabasa
Associated acts Moshe Hecht Band, Blanket Statementstein, The Mr. Shabbos Show
Website moshiachoi.com
Members Yishai Romanoff
Mike Wagner
Mitchell "Mordechai" Harrison
Paul "Pesach" Alpert

Moshiach Oi! is an American Hasidic punk rock band from Long Beach, New York. Formed in 2008 by lead singer Yishai Romanoff and guitarist Mike Wagner, they released their debut album, Better Get Ready (2009), on Shemspeed Records, followed in 2011 by This World is Nothing.

Band history

Moshiach Oi! was started in 2008 by singer/guitarist Yishai Romanoff, who sought to reconcile his then-recently renewed Jewish faith with the punk rock music he had loved as a teenager.[1] Initially a solo act, Romanoff eventually brought in his friend Mike Wagner, as well as bassist Mitchell "Mordechai" Harrison and drummer Paul "Pesach" Alpert, to complete the band.[2][3]

The group's debut album, Better Get Ready, produced by Wagner and mastered by veteran punk producer Don Fury, was released by Shemspeed Records and the band's own Shabasa Records label on August 25, 2009.[2] A second album, This World is Nothing, was released two years later just on Shabasa,[4] accompanied by the single and music video "Got Nothing On Me". The band was prominently featured in the 2012 documentary Punk Jews.[5]

Musical style

Moshiach Oi's music combines the sound of traditional hardcore punk with lyrics that promote Jewish ideals and values. While the music is inspired by Romanoff's teenage love of punk bands like Leftöver Crack and F-Minus,[1] lyrical topics include blessing God, Shabbat, Torah study, idolatry, Moshiach, and Rebbe Nachman of Breslov.[6] Patrick Aleph of the website Jewcy summarized Better Get Ready as "a blistering punk rock siddurim that effortlessly ties together Black Flag and Rambam, 7 Seconds and the Rebbe, The Casualties and the Kabballists."[7]

Shabasa Records

Shabasa Records is an independent record label owned by the band, through which much of their music is released. Several other bands are also signed to the label, most of them containing one or more Moshiach Oi! members. These include Blanket Statementstein, RockaZion, White Shabbos, Mr. Shabbos, and Shin Shin Mem.

Members

Discography

Albums
Singles

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Leland, John (Mar 9, 2013). "The Orthodox Fringe". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Savage, Emily (Sep 2009). "Moshiach Oi! Hardcore Torah-lovers". Jweekly. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  3. Suskind, Alex (Aug 2009). "A Blitzkrieg Bop for God". The Forward. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  4. "This World Is Nothing". Amazon.com. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  5. Osgood, Kelsey (Dec 10, 2012). "Abrahamic Rockers". The New Yorker. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. Croland, Michael (June 2010). "Punk Jews in the East Village". Jewcy'. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  7. Aleph, Patrick (Sep 2009). "Album Review: Moshiach Oi! "Better Get Ready"". Jewcy. Retrieved 31 March 2013.

External links