Aviv Geffen
Photo: Gadi Dagon
Aviv Geffen goes international
Israeli rock singer signs contract with leading US recording company Warner Atlantic
Good news for Aviv Geffen's 'billion' fans: The Israeli rock star is on his way to becoming an international star, a position unattained by any Israeli rock singer so far.
Geffen and Stephen Wilson (Porcupine Tree) - a collaborative effort between one of Israel's biggest pop stars and one of progressive rock's most innovative musicians - signed a contract at Warner Atlantic Saturday, one of the world's four biggest record companies.
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The album is due to be released in the US on January 23d, 2007 and the road tour is set to begin on the same day with a rock concert in Boston. The tour will end on March 4th in Athens.
Representation by a music company the size of Warner is a dream come true for any musician. Geffen and Blackfield are joining international groups such as Metallica, Led Zeppelin, and artists such as Bjork and Phil Collins.
"Warner loved Blackfield's music and said it was catchy and clever. We are very excited and expecting to work with them," Andy Naff, the group's director in New York and a participant in the negotiations told the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper Saturday evening.
"It is very difficult for foreign rock band to break into the US, but we are optimistic and hopeful that our album will succeed in America," he added.
This is one of the greatest moments in Geffen's long career. He recorded his first song at the age of 17 along with dozens of singles including top hits such as "Billions are Wrong", "To Cry For You" and "We Loved."
Geffen: It's a dream come true
After turning into a superstar in Israel, he founded Blackfield with his British friend Stephen Wilson and they quickly became an international success in Europe after selling 100,000 copies of their first album."I am very excited, it's a dream come true and one of the most important moments of my musical career," Gefen told the newspaper Saturday.
"Last year, Warner representatives came to see a Blackfield performance, and we began our secret negotiations two months ago in New York. We didn't believe we would actually sign up with one of the world's largest recording companies with such marketing power. This doesn't guarantee sales and international success, but it has significantly increased our chances," Geffen said.
Geffen went on to say that thousands of rock groups are standing in line in the hope of signing up with such a company, "but it happened to Blackfield, primarily due to our Israeli audiences who supported us."
While Israel has become a superpower in electronic music, Israeli bands have failed to succeed internationally in the pop and rock music arenas.
The list of international Israeli successes include the Ofarim duo whose song Cinderella Rockefeller reached the top of the British charts; Ofra Haza, who took out international albums in Europe and the US and who was nominated for the Grammy Award; Achinoam Nini, who took Italy and Spain by storm; Minimal Compact who recorded five albums in Europe and appeared at well known venues; Mike Brant who made it big in France, and the album by Milk and Honey which was recorded in English and sold more than three million copies throughout Europe.
