October 5, 2010
A Look Back at The National…

I wrote this little account of my time with The National for Rolling Stone Turkey back in December of 2007 for the January 2008 issue of the magazine. I think it is an interesting read for any fan due to the timing of the encounter. Just on the brink of mainstream success, it is amazing to see just how far they have come (Obama’s campaign song anyone?) and just how unsure they were of their continued success. You’ve got to love those modest, midwestern men. I hope you enjoy a look back at The National.

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When I heard that Cincinnati, Ohio natives The National were coming to Babylon I knew that there couldn’t be a better case of perfect timing. The National’s gig at Babylon coincided with

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Filed under: the national babylon 
January 19, 2010
Ooooh....what a pretty new site!

Babylon, one of Istanbul’s best live music venues, finally has a new, long overdue, website! I tried clicking on the English tab at the top but for some reason it seems to be inactive, so for now we’ll have to do with the Turkish version. I think that my absolute favorite feature has to be the menu at the very bottom of the website which instantly connects you to desired sections in Babylon, Babylon Lounge or Babylon Alacati…it used to be such a pain in the a** to get yourself from one venue to the next, It was so frustrating getting tangled in that web of disconnected links that you would just give up and close the window!

There also is a link for a radio—right now it says radio not found—so it seems that we’ll have that to look forward to in coming weeks.

Happy Surfing!

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Filed under: Babylon 
December 9, 2009

Are you looking for a really cool out-of-the-ordinary night to surprise your date or your friends with this Saturday night?

Do you want to go on a free-wheeling, entertaining audio-visual journey?

Then try DJ YODA at Babylon this Saturday, December 12th, 2009.

Q Magazine calls DJ YODA “One of the 10 DJs you must see perform live before you die”

He’s worked with everyone from Amy Winehouse, Mark Ronson, Lily Allen and many more….does that impress you at all?

How about this…he uses a Pioneer DVJ 1000 which basically means that he doesn’t just mix music, he mixes images LIVE when he performs. Have you seen a DJ like that in Istanbul lately?

Musically he is a master of the cut & paste style working with everything from funk, hip hop, drum&bass and even 1930s tunes.

It’s fun, different, fresh and exciting. If you think it’s worth it to try something new, which in this case I definitely do, then get yourself a ticket to DJ YODA at Babylon this Saturday. And you can take my word for it, because I no longer am employed by the entity that is bringing this act…you can be sure that I have no way to profit from you going to this event…I just think it really is not to be missed and want to make sure you are aware of it!

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Filed under: DJ Babylon 
October 24, 2009

Last year on September 22nd, 2008 my friend CeyK sent me a track by a smooth young jazz vocalist out of New York by the name of Jose James. Last night (almost exactly a year and a month later!) I had the pleasure of hearing Jose James play live at Babylon and it was just beautiful. Istanbul is one of the last cities where James will be touring for his critically acclaimed 2008 album The Dreamer, released on Gilles Peterson’s label Brownswood. As I had the opportunity to have a quick chat with James backstage I quickly learned that he is now moving on to promote his new album Black Magic which features BiLo, DJ Mitsu the Beats, Moodyman, Taylor McFerrin as well as production work by Flying Lotus. James says that although the Black Magic tour will have more of a hip hop sound in comparison to The Dreamer, that fans of his debut should stay tuned for a traditional classic jazz album expected to drop in Spring of 2010. I also added in a photo of Jose James backstage at Babylon with Nublu impresario and saxophone player Ilhan Ersahin. I thought it was a great opportunity to bring them together as Jose James did a year-long residency at the East Village live music club Nublu in 2008.

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Filed under: music babylon