Israel’s Be’er Sheva is home to Elad David, who was born there in 1981. At the age of 12, he began his relationship with the guitar, and by the time he was 15, he was already performing and playing in his own band. After serving in the military, he spent three years studying at the “Rimon” School of Jazz and Contemporary Music, where he gained a wealth of theoretical and technical knowledge. Elad has a wide range of musical influences, and this is evident in his playing, original songs, and playing style. Elad has performed in a variety of musical genres over the years, including Israeli rock, grunge, and classical rock bands. Additionally, he has performed with the singer, author, and creator Eitan Dror in the bands Solix and 306°, as well as in numerous other recordings and productions. He currently performs primarily with the band KALBEI PAVLOV (on lead guitar and ukulele). He plays all kinds of guitars, including bass guitar and ukulele, and is employed as a hired player and session musician for various productions. a mixing and mastering engineer, too.
The song Funky smell is actually the lead single from a brand-new concept EP that will be released in late November. The inspiration for the project came from a song he wrote and produced that served as the podcast’s opening, after which he decided to create an entire album in that vein. a beat, synthesizers, and samples over live guitars and wind instruments.
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
ELAD DAVID: I was born and raised in Be’er Sheva, in southern Israel. From a very young age I already had an affinity for music. Whether it’s singing in front of the whole kindergarten, or playing the recorder and organ, and also writing songs and singing them to myself. But it wasn’t until about the age of 12, when I saw my best friend playing the guitar, that I was really drawn to it and decided to learn too. And the rest is history as they say.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
ELAD DAVID: Of course, life and music is a way of learning and constant development, but I also have professional training. I studied for about 6 years with a teacher until I was drafted into the army, and immediately after the army I continued my studies at the “Rimon” school for jazz and contemporary music, I studied there for 3 years. And I still keep learning new things all the time, taking digital courses and reading a lot. Constantly developing in other areas of music and in general.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘ELAD DAVID’?
ELAD DAVID: You can say that the same childhood friend I mentioned earlier, he was the one who made me start playing the guitar and listening to music that I didn’t know from home, he was a very big influence. After that, of course, there was my teacher, Gideon, who later we even got to teach together and even play and perform together. And of course bands and musicians like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Hendrix, Extreme, Yngwie Malmsteen, Mike Stern, George Benson, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker and more…
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
ELAD DAVID: It’s a bit difficult for me to define because my music is very diverse, as well as my influences, which are very diverse. My first album was more rock/progressive with a lot of acoustic pieces reminiscent of Irish or ethnic/folk music. I also released an album of ukulele covers, with my special arrangements for solo ukulele. And now the last tracks I released, which are generally with electronic elements and a lot of synths. I think I always had a strong desire to be as melodic as possible and always find a good balance between melody and harmony. If the melody is complex then the harmony will be less complex, if the melody is simple, the harmony will probably be complex. But it will always be something that is built just like a song and not too complex for the listeners. All my instrumental pieces are structured in a very orderly way, just like a song.
ELAD DAVID:
As they say, it’s a small world. Almost everything that is done has already been done or resembles something that has been done. That’s why one track of mine can remind a lot of completely different things to completely different people and it’s not even what I thought or was supposedly influenced by when I wrote it. In any case, if I sit down to write something and it comes out too similar to something existing, or even if it’s too simple, I probably won’t use it in the end. I will always try to find something special or break something familiar to make it a little “crooked”. In addition, the foundation on which I grew up is rock, but it is very important to keep an open mind and hear everything from everything and also to learn all the time and develop. Then when you sit down to write, you come up with ideas that are such a combination of everything and something special comes out.
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative and entertainment?
ELAD DAVID:
I think music is a tremendous power, and art in general. Music can really have an effect in all kinds of fields and bring people together and encourage. For example, I play and sing regularly in a nursing ward in a nursing home, and the reactions I get are very moving, it makes them feel so good, so simple, without too much effort on my part. Personally, I’m less concerned with politics, I try to make music first for myself and then for the listeners, as soon as I put it out, it already belongs to everyone. And to see that there are people who listen and like it, just warms the heart and makes me very happy.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
ELAD DAVID:
The warm responses I receive certainly give strength & motivation to continue. I would be happy to reach as many ears as possible, to as many diverse audiences as possible, and if it is possible to make people happy or cause certain emotions with my music, then of course I am also excited about that.
8. Could you describe your creative processes? How do you usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
ELAD DAVID:
It very much depends. In most cases I sit with the guitar and just play and improvise until I come up with some beautiful idea that I like. In most cases I record it on my iPhone, then forget about it ;) for some time. Some things I go back to and start developing them or add words, or start recording on the computer and think about the arrangement and structure, etc. In the case of the new album, I first started by creating a drum beat and structure. Then I added the synth bass, and after that the rest of the stuff. This is a completely different project than what I have done so far. In the first single from the album, Funky Smell, I hosted a friend who played saxophone. And there is another track where I hosted a friend on the trumpet. In the other tracks I do everything myself.
9. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
ELAD DAVID: For me the hardest struggle is always the financial matter. I had to work in jobs not related to music, and there were more difficult and less difficult times. This is also one of the reasons I decided to just learn to do everything myself. And the truth is that since I started releasing my original music I’m just in the clouds. And now I’m all in, and a lot of new music is coming.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
ELAD DAVID: I’m really proud and happy about everything that happened to me in the last year and a half, since I upgraded my studio and started releasing my music myself. Something I probably should have done a long time ago.
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