One For The Weekend: Altin Gün

Check out "Rakıya Su Katamam" off Altin Gün's Aşk album out March 10th via Glitterbeat/ATO Records. 

Here's the scoop...

Grammy-nominated Turkish psych-folk innovators Altin Gün have announced their eagerly anticipated new album, Aşk, arriving via ATO Records on Friday, March 10. Pre-orders are available right here.

 

An exuberant return to the 70s Anatolian folk-rock sound that characterized Altın Gün’s landmark first two albums, Aşk is heralded by today’s premiere of the pulse-pounding new single, “Rakıya Su Katamam,” available now at all DSPs and streaming services. A space rock-powered take on the folk standard composed by Turkish writer/theologian Mustafa Öztürk, the track is joined by an equally kaleidoscopic official music video which you can watch below.  

Aşk sees Altın Gün veering away from the electronic, synth-drenched sound of their critically acclaimed 2021 albums, Âlem and Yol, to capture all the infectious power and urgency of the Amsterdam-based band’s famously propulsive live performances. Recorded using vintage equipment and techniques, the album’s ten groundbreaking tracks all represent visionary new readings of traditional Turkish folk tunes, revealing how these ancient songs remain eternally resonant and ripe for reinterpretation.

 

“These songs have been covered so many times, always,” says vocalist/keyboardist Merve Dasdemir.

 

“But not really in psychedelic pop versions,” adds bassist Jasper Verhulst. “It’s definitely connecting more with a live sound – almost like a live album. We, as a band, just going into a rehearsal space together and creating music together instead of demoing at home.”

 

Rooted in antiquity yet blazing with contemporary relevance and vitality, Aşk also includes Altın Gün’s dazzling reinvention of “Leylim Ley,” a classic song of lost love and exile available now at all DSPs and streaming services. “Lelim Ley” features music composed by renowned Turkish musician, author, poet, and politician Zülfü Livaneli and lyrics written by the late Turkish novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist Sabahattin Ali (1907–1948). Taken from Ali’s 1937 short story, “Ses,” “Lelim Ley” was joined by music composed by Livaneli in 1975 and has since been embraced as one of the most well-known and beloved songs among Turkish people everywhere. 

  

Altın Gün have captured the world’s imagination with their indelible fusion of psychedelic rock, deep funk, synthpop, cosmic reggae, and more with the rich and incredibly diverse traditions of Anatolian and Turkish folk music. The band captured the world’s attention with their 2018 debut, On, and quickly earned a prestigious Grammy Award nomination for “Best World Album” with their 2019 sophomore LP, Gece.

 

Renowned for their dizzyingly hypnotic live performances, Altın Gün has spent much of this past year lighting up stages around the world, including sold out headline tours in North America, Europe, and the UK, along with show-stopping sets at such top international festivals as Indio, CA’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the Netherlands’ Best Kept Secret, Barcelona, Spain’s Primavera Sound, and Reykjavik, Iceland’s Iceland Airwaves to name but a few. The band – who recently performed three historic collaborations with the Netherlands’ world famous Metropole Orkest – will embark on a wide ranging EU/UK headline run in March 2023, with North American tour dates – including a Toronto show at Danforth Music Hall on August 2nd and appearances at such upcoming festivals as Check, VA’s FloydFest (July 26-30) – to be announced soon. 

 

Watch Altin Gün's video for "Rakıya Su Katamam" followed by a list of tour dates. 

 

UPCOMING TOUR DATES

Wed 07/12/23 - Pittsburgh, PA - Thunderbird

Thu 07/13/23 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom

Fri 07/14/23 - Detroit, MI - Magic Stick

Sat 07/15/23 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall

Mon 07/17/23 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall

Tue 07/18/23 - Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theatre

Wed 07/19/23 - Des Moines, IA - Wooly's

Fri 07/21/23 - Indianapolis, IN - The Vogue

Mon 07/24/23 - Nashville, TN - Basement East

Tue 07/25/23 - Atlanta, GA - Terminal West

Thu 07/27/23 - Floyd, VA- FloydFest

Fri 07/28/23 - Washington, DC - The Howard

Sat 07/29/23 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer

Mon 07/31/23 - Brooklyn, NY - Brooklyn Steel

Wed 08/02/23 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall

Altin Gün preview new Yol album with "Ordunun Dereleri"

"Ordunun Dereleri" is off Altin Gün's forthcoming Yol album out February 26. Watch the video followed by a 2019 performance clip below. 

Here's the scoop...

The Amsterdam-based Altin Gün return with a masterful single - and upcoming album - that widens their critically acclaimed exploration of Anatolian rock and Turkish psychedelic folk to include dreamy 80’s synth-pop and dancefloor excursions. 

The band are a renowned live act with strings of sold-out shows on three continents, whose recordings are marked by muscular grooves and vibrant melodies. Yol, their third album in as many years - and the follow up to their GRAMMY nominated second album Gece - excitedly continues that trend; while also digging in deep to unveil a new palette of sonic surprises. 

“Ordunun Dereleri” – the debut single from their new Yol album out February 26th on Glitterbeat Records – is a reimagining of a traditional Turkish folk song, a classical love story about two doomed lovers, that showcases the band’s thrilling shift towards a synth-driven Europop sound. Mysterious and atmospheric, the track features down-tempo electro beats, majestic synths and Erdinç Ecevit's yearning vocals of unrequited love. The single comes accompanied by the band’s very first narrative video, a gorgeous clip shot in the forests of the Netherlands. 

You can get the "Ordunun Dereleri" single right here. Watch the video followed by Altin Gün's performance at the Route du Rock Festival in November 2019 below. 

Mekons head to Joshua Tree for new Deserted album

Check out "After The Rain" starring Sally Timms and "How Many Stars" from The Mekons' Deserted out March 29th.