Photo: Berk Cakmakci
The political developments in Turkey over the past years didn’t spare the underground music scene. For instance, when Paypal was banned in the country, the platform Bandcamp disappeared practically overnight as a promotional and distribution tool for DIY and underground bands. However, this did nothing to stop the rise of Jakuzi as one of the most popular bands in the metropolis of Istanbul.
This synth-pop trio calls their music »Fantezi Müzik« and named their debut album, which came out on the Berlin label City Slang, accordingly. Jakuzi are playful masters of fantastic pop hits, albeit sometimes in the form of barely-polished sound diamonds. They have moments that resemble the melodic musings of Future Islands (»İstediğin Gibi Kullan«). At the same time, their songs represent a reflected, empathic masculinity, invite punks into dialogue, or negotiate the current condition of the LGBTQ scene. Seductive indeed!