the Music Lounge by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A & E Writer

Yoav's interesting life with anti-Gay picketers and Tori Amos

by Albert Rodriguez - SGN A&E Writer The obvious thing about Yoav is that he's the whole package - tall, dark and extremely handsome. Would you mind hitting that after a long day at the office? Didn't think so. But the not-so-obvious thing is his talent, surpassing those striking looks. Hard to believe, but it's true. Born in Israel, raised in South Africa and currently residing in London, Yoav brings a wealth of cultural influences to his music - a wonderful potpourri of pop, folk, hip-hop and electronic beats. Every sound on his debut Charmed & Strange is generated by him and a guitar, nothing else. In 2007, Yoav was exposed to a wide Gay audience when he toured with Queer magnet Tori Amos - they even got picketed in our country's midsection by an organized hate group. His singles, "Club Thing" and "Beautiful Lie," have become global favorites, including places like Turkey and his native Israel. Both songs are expected to be on Yoav's set list when he performs May 1 at the High Dive (513 N. 36th Street, Fremont district). Tickets are $10 advance, $12 at the door. Articulate, polite, and with an accent that made me tingle in areas I can't say out loud, here's what Yoav disclosed to "The Music Lounge" from a dressing room in Brighton, England. Rodriguez: You toured last year with Tori Amos. How did that go? Yoav: The response from the first night was amazing, and then it got better and better. I sold so many CDs of my EP, and it went on Billboard's "Top Heatseekers" charts. It was an amazing experience, quite an adventure. Rodriguez: Is she a good person to be on the road with? Yoav: Yeah, she's a crazy, charismatic, very intense person, and very inspiring - her work ethic - every show she plays different sets and rehearses with the band for hours every day. She's very devoted to her fans. Rodriguez: Tori Amos has a huge Gay fan base. Did any of these fans spill over to you? Yoav: For sure. Funny enough, we were picketed in Kansas by godhatesfags.com. It was crazy because they knew Tori Amos has a big Gay following, so they were outside with their banners and all of that. It was mad, for this to happen right in the middle of America. But, her fans were good to me. I've gotten lots of messages on MySpace. Rodriguez: It's hard not to ignore the fact that you're an attractive man. Are you bothered with drawing fans to your music by way of your looks? Yoav: It's a weird thing for me because when I was in school and growing up, I was thickly shaped. I was sort of chunky, and had bad skin, big glasses, braces, big head. I was the only Jewish kid in my school, captain of my chess team. I couldn't dream of having a girlfriend. So, it is a little strange that I've definitely changed over the years. I don't think I'll ever be confident about any of that. Rodriguez: Some artists are comfortable being seen as objects, some aren't. Where are you at in regards to this? Yoav: There was a show, the worst one so far was a recent one in Toronto, where there was a bunch of girls that screamed, Beatles-style. It was distracting, and I'd rather not be known for that. When I was younger, I wanted to work whatever angles to make it in the record business, and I've recently just become more comfortable wearing my glasses again because I feel like it gives me a boundary and a barrier. I feel like myself again, so that's kind of been my response to that whole thing. Rodriguez: Did you get to spend time in Seattle on your last visit? Yoav: A little bit. I usually don't get to see more than a few hours in each place. I try, if I have some energy after the gig, to wander around the town. Rodriguez: Now that you're on the road steadily, how often are you actually home? Yoav: Not much. Touring England is different because I have an apartment in London, so when I'm within three hours of it we'll usually drive back. I'd say I've been home 15 to 20 days this year so far. Rodriguez: You lived in New York briefly and I'm wondering whether you'd consider moving back to America. Yoav: I'm very heavily considering it. I'm actually considering the West Coast - for something new, number one, and number two, it's occurred to me that living in the most expensive city rent-wise and not ever being there doesn't really make any sense. When I am back in London, the weather's bad and there's tons of bills to pay. London is cool if you can really get started in making a living there, if you're in the thick of it and have a bit of cash to play around with. I've had some fun, but I think I had more fun in New York and I'd like to see what the West Coast is all about for a year or two as well. Rodriguez: What's on your iPod? Yoav: At the moment, driving around England on the last tour, I just threw a lot of CDs in my bag. I'm listening to [Bob] Dylan, The Pixies, Matthew Herbert, Arcade Fire, lots of different sorts of things. I'll listen to Dylan, then I'll put on Missy Elliott - as long as it's good. Rodriguez: If you weren't making music, what would you be doing right now? Yoav: It's a tough one because music has always been central in my life, even when I was three years old - my parents decided I was going to be a concert pianist. By the time I was seven, I was singing. I was writing from a young age as well. So this is sort of a combination of my whole life. I think something to do with travel, exploring different places. I don't know if I'd get paid for it, but I'd probably want to do five years of wandering around the world and doing psychedelics in the Amazon jungle, maybe write a book about it. Rodriguez: Does it get lonely on the road? Yoav: I like solitude a lot. I've become a big stoner on tour, usually after the show to settle down. That seems to be all the loneliness. I quite like being on my own and having thoughts to myself, and writing or playing. Rodriguez: Do you go through any process of deciding what to look like onstage? Do you ever feel the need to step it up - comb the hair, wear something nice? Yoav: Less and less. Especially because when you're on the road you generally have one bag and in that bag you have a spare pair of shoes, a bunch of jeans. The nature of what I'm doing is playing, so I can't really wear too much shit that's going to knock against my guitar and get picked up by the microphone. Rodriguez: How do you go on the road with just one bag? Do you pull over and do laundry? Yoav: Laundry almost never happens. You end up rationing stuff and buying more jocks and socks from Target or wherever. I know artists who have jocks and socks on their riders - they throw away their old ones and wear new ones. It's not very eco-friendly, but there it is. Rodriguez: If you could open for any artist, who would you choose? Yoav: Bjork is like the ultimate all-around artist for me, she's just so great. That would be huge, it would be an amazing thing to do that. I'd say Bjork and Radiohead, but more Bjork than anyone else.