İstanbul Blues Kumpanyası releases Live at “Efes Pilsen Blues Festival 1997 EP”

Istanbul Blues Kumpanyasi was founded by Sarp Keskiner and Salih Nazim Peker in 1993, modeled on early 60’s collectives namely as Blues Inc. and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers (UK) with promoting ever changing line ups, up to who was available for live occasions. As a wayward collective, the “Company” supplied an experimental ground for nearly every musician of the era based in Istanbul, who were in a way associated with traditional blues, gospel, jazz and free improvisational music and this audio document features the band’s last line up; before they dive deep into Turkish underground psyche extravaganza in 1998.

Besides all, Istanbul Blues Kumpanyasi was the ever and last band booked to perform on Efes Pilsen Blues Festival, sharing the bill with legendary names like Nappy Brown and Eddie Kirkland in 1997. Even today, many blues purists and musicians in Turkey who were a part of the audience then, now salute the band’s hyperactive performance and the inspiration they gave, while encouraging many names to take an excursion to dive deep into depths of unknown chapters of blues genres.

Recorded directly to DAT at Hilton İstanbul Convention Center for his personal favor by the technical director of the festival; the project just has released this historical audio document features a gang of young enthusiastic musicians, sincerely in love with black music elements while enjoying their lively twenties.