Geva Askarov
Geva Askarov (Hebrew: גבע אסקרוב) (born November 9, 1970) is an Israeli rock singer, lyricist and composer. After having been active in several bands in the Israeli rock scene during the 90s, he is releasing his first solo record "Kol Ma Sheyesh" (All There Is) at the age of 39.
Biography
Background
Geva Askarov was raised in Kiryat Ono. He was born to a Swedish mother who migrated to Israel and converted to Judaism due to her love for her future husband and Geva's father, an Israeli of a Georgian Jewish heritage. Today he lives in Mazor settlement in Israel together with his wife and three children. Aside from being a musician, Geva is also an independent business owner.
Early Career
Originally Geva Askarov was a drummer. He studied the drums with David Rich in Tel Aviv’s Metronome for 4 years before his military service. Geva learned to play the guitar by himself, with the guidance of his musical partner at the time, Amir Arman.
After having finished his military service and working as a flight attendant for El Al, Geva started his musical career during the nineties as lead singer for the band Og. They performed regularly at The Logus Club, Israel Festival, Beit Lessin, and other venues. Other band members included Effi Shoshani, Jackie Shraga, Ronen Zel, and Amir Arman. The band split up before completing their debut album.
Following the breakup, Askarov and Arman, who was the band's bass player, established the band Matis with Askarov as lead singer and writer. Since then Askarov put his musical career on hold and didn't want to release any material.
Debut Album
Askarov finally wrote new songs for his debut solo album, "Kol Ma Sheyesh", between the years 2007 and 2009. He set out to release it at the age of 39, finally feeling that the lyrics and music are ripe and mature. Contrary to most artists, Askarov was inspired by the love and comfort of his family to get on stage with his own material which he calls "The most personal and real material that I have written".
After most of the lyrics were finished, Geva arrived to Kicha studios in 2008 where Uri "Momo" Barak, studio owner and one of the most respected sound engineers in Israel, introduced him to Ronen Hajaj, another well known sound engineer who has worked with Asaf Avidan and Eviatar Banai.
Four songs were initially recorded with the musician Geva Alon, amongst which only one made it to the final cut. Hajaj introduced Askarov to the musical producer Adam Schefflan, former bass player for Eatliz and producer for Rona Kenan, Noam Rotem, and others. Schefflan put together Askarov's band for the recording sessions, including guitar player Or Bahir from Eatliz, and drummer Barak Kram who has recorded with Ivri Lider and Ninet Tayeb.
The new album is planned for release in March 2010. Two singles were released - "Kol Ma Sheyesh", and "Ma Yihiye" (What Will Be). Geva went on an Israeli tour during February 2010 in support of the album.