Yonatan Gat to Release 'Iberian Passage' EP May 27th

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It should come as no surprise that after years of touring with his band Monotonix, once hailed by SPIN as the "most exciting live rock band in rock 'n' roll", that Yonatan Gat would carry that same intensity in his own act.

After five successful years of playing 1000 shows spanning 40 countries and 5 continents and releasing three records on Drag City with his co-founded band, the New York-by-way-of-Tel-Aviv guitarist took some time to himself in Portugal.

While there, he set out to create a solo album that will pair his punk guitar with a different sort of beat.

Inspired by African ensembles such as Orchestra Baobab, as well as the early work of Brazilian psychedelic experimentalists Os Mutantes - Gat's truly amazing talents shine out on Iberian Passage, blending together his punk rock influences with the wild improvisational spirit of Miles Davis and Charles Mingus. Gat engineered, mixed and produced the album himself in a studio in the city of Porto; joining forces with Portuguese drummer Igor Domingues.

The raw and unique nature of the recording is augmented by the incredible versatility of the shredded guitar riffs - melted in between pulsing African inspired drums.

A masterful guitarist, Gat recently won Village Voice's "Best Guitarist of 2013" with a sound he describes as "homeless between the Middle East and New York."

'Iberian Passage' is a guitar album, as well as a globe-trotting affair. The musicians featured in the recording have roots in Israel, Portugal, and Africa.

Following recent travels to Brazil and Spain, Yonatan lived in Portugal for two months working on the album, incorporating field recordings taken in Spain, Portugal and New York to lend a swarming metropolitan buzz to the tracks and a cinematic quality to the album.

But more than anything - this is a punk record, both in sheer energy and vitality, and in transcending borders in every sense of the word.

In Brazil they call this idea antropofago--cannibalistic devouring of different cultures, to the forging of something new.

"Iberian Passage" will be released on Joyful Noise Recordings on 5/27/2014 on vinyl & digital. The first 400 copies are hand-numbered, and pressed on gorgeous picture disc vinyl featuring the abstract tribal art of painter Baker Overstreet.