A brand-new project with a debut album fresh out of the oven, and an ongoing tour bringing their rapacious psychedelic-rock sound soaked in Eastern Mediterranean waves to every shore of Europe… What more could you ask from a band to mark a new beginning? Well, how about the fact that they have also been announced as one of the highlights for the OffWomex programme, allowing us to share and spread our love for their music far and wide.
Yes, as it sounds like, we’re pretty excited about the upcoming participation of Buzz’ Ayaz at WOMEX, just as thrilled to feature them in the first episode of our revamped Musical Road to WOMEX dedicated to the 2024 edition of the Worldwide Music Expo.
The quartet from Nicosia, Cyprus, captures the finest musical influences of their island’s Greek and Turkish heritage, bridging the two sides of their divided city and country. Their self-titled debut album, crafted to reflect the vibrant energy of their live performances, immerses listeners in a distinctive sound. With powerful, fuzzed-out guitar riffs, resonant bass lines, and the unique timbre of traditional Eastern Mediterranean instruments, the album not only captures the essence of their homeland but also weaves together the diverse cultural influences that have shaped their music.
Learn a little more about the project though a Q&A with their band leader Antonis Antoniou (you may remember him from Monsieur Doumani and Trio Tekke) and an handpicked selection of their favourite tunes…
Could you briefly introduce your music to someone new at Womex and share the key influences and origins of your unique sound?
Our music is melodically based on the local musical tradition. Eastern melodic scales with microtonal notes are mainly what we’re employing in composing our music. This is essentially the source of the primary colour of our sound.
Every band member is influenced by our folk music on various levels and dimensions. In the same way that we are influenced by folk music we are also influenced by several other genres and styles. These are psychedelia, rock, blues and experimental music. Elements from these are combined to create our sonic world. Some bands that inspired us in forming our style are: Morphine, Baba Zula, The Doors, The Velvet Underground, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard.
Could you share a personal anecdote or experience that impacted your musical journey and the evolution of your sound?
This would be the struggle to develop/discover the texture of the bass clarinet that would fit our purpose. It took some considerable time of experimentation with amps, pedals, effects and blowing techniques. We reached a quite desirable level but we are still working on it.
In a world full of diverse musical genres, styles, and traditions, how do you believe your music stands out and brings something fresh and exciting to the audience’s ears?
We think what makes our music interesting is the precise arrangements and the combination of these particular instruments played in a quite unusual way. In general, we like to avoid cliches and we are trying always to challenge ourselves and discover something new.
Another thing is perhaps our enthusiasm and commitment to this project as well.
As Womex is not only the Worldwide Music Expo but also a lively global music funfair, are there any showcases you’re looking forward to attending and enjoying or artists participating that you would like to meet during those five days?
Womex is always a place to discover new music and to get inspired. We are planning to see as many showcases as possible. We will study the timetable carefully and see what’s the most attractive for us. One of these is Lenhart Tapes from Serbia, with whom we share the same label.
This edition of Womex will take place in Manchester, a city with a vibrant cultural scene and rich music history. Are you particularly passionate about any act coming from the city and how has the city’s musical heritage influenced your work, if at all?
A few years back, we saw a performance by Henge in Italy. We were playing at the same festival. It completely astounded us. We then suggested that they perform at a festival in Cyprus, and when they did, everyone there adored them. What a band!
Womex is a unique opportunity to share and showcase your music with new people and inform them about your upcoming projects. Could you reveal some of your plans for the future?
We are already planning to record our second album, probably right after Womex. The songs are already being performed live and we experienced some quite exciting feedback from the audience, so we are really looking forward to put them down on a record.
If you had to draft an invitation card for our readers to join you at Womex and enjoy your showcase, what would you write in it?
Join us on a unique experiential journey!
- Buzz'Ayaz will be performing at the offWOMEX Stage, Aviva Studios Hall on Saturday 26th October from 0.30AM -
PLAYLIST: BUZZ’ AYAZ INFLUENCES
- You can find all the previous episodes of Musical Road to Womex HERE -