The Portnoy Brothers | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Manchester, England |
Genres | Pop rock, folk rock, soul, R&B |
Years active | 2014 | –present
Members | Israel Portnoy Mendy Portnoy |
Website | www |
The Portnoy Brothers are a British–Israeli folk rock duo formed in 2014 by Manchester-born brothers Israel Portnoy (born 1990; vocals, guitar) and Mendy Portnoy (born 1992; keyboards). Their debut album, as The Portnoy Brothers, Learn to Love, was released independently on 23 September 2016. On 29 March 2019 they released "The Garden Sessions" EP.
History
Israel "Sruli" and Mendy Portnoy were born in Manchester, England, later moving to Israel as adults. Their father was an orchestra conductor-turned-rabbi.[1] They played music separately from a young age and began playing together at around 14 years old.[1]
The Portnoy brothers began recording their debut album, Learn to Love, in 2013 with bassist and engineer Alon Hillel.[1] The album was co-funded by fans via an Indiegogo campaign, which raised £9,315 GBP.[2] In January 2016, they released a video for the album's closing track, "Timebound", as a tribute to David Bowie shortly after his death. In May 2016, they appeared at the Day to Praise Israel Independence Day event.[3] The album was released on 23 September 2016.
Originally a YouTube series of live performances, The Portnoy Brothers released The Garden Sessions as an EP on 29 March 2019. The release included live renditions of four of the band's songs: 'Old Soul', 'Seeing is Believing', 'Tomorrow's Yesterday' and 'Memories'.
A sophomore album, No Complaints, was released on October 31, 2019. The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, and the band chose the name as a nod to the novel Portnoy's Complaint.[4]
Since 2020, they have been releasing songs for their 'Shabbat Project' album. They have recorded songs with Shlomo Katz, Zusha, Yosef Karduner, Amir Alaev, and even their father, Rabbi Joel Portnoy. The projects have accompanying videos on YouTube with some songs available for streaming. The completed album is set to be released soon.[5]
Musical style
The Portnoy Brothers have cited The Beatles, Stevie Wonder, and Simon & Garfunkel as musical influences.[1]
Discography
Albums
- Learn to Love (2016)
- No Complaints (2019)
Extended plays
- The Garden Sessions EP (2019)
Singles and music videos
- "Learn to Love" (2014)
- "Memories" (2015)
- "Tomorrow's Yesterday" (2015)
- "Stars Aglow"/"Timebound" (2016)
- "Brothers in Arms" (2016)
- "Old Soul" (2018)
- "Spotified" (2019)
- "Sing It Again" (2019)
- "Nechake Lecha" (2019)
- "Simple City" (2019)
- "Shalom Aleichem" (ft. Shlomo Katz) (2020)
- "Anim Zemirot" (ft. Zusha) (2020)
- "Yigdal" (2020)
- "Jerusalem of Gold" (2020)
- "Tzadik Katamar" (2020)
- "Yom Shabbaton" (ft. Alex Clare) (2020)
- "Shirat Haasavim" (2021)
- "Etz Chayim" (ft. Rabbi Joel Portnoy) (2021)
- "Lecha Dodi" (ft. Yosef Karduner) (2023)
Covers
- "If I Were A Rich Man" (Fiddler on the Roof cover) (2017)
- "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" (The Wizard of OZ Cover) (2018)
References
- 1 2 3 4 Ariel Hendelman (15 September 2015). "Sibling synchronicity". The Jerusalem Post.
- ↑ "Funding The Portnoy Brothers Debut Album". Indiegogo. Retrieved 8 June 2016.
- ↑ Day to Praise 2016 – Shema Yisrael – The Portnoy Brothers on YouTube
- ↑ Rodgers, Shawn (30 October 2019). "Portnoy Brothers Have 'No Complaints'". Jewish Journal. Retrieved 18 January 2022.
- ↑ "theportnoybrothers". www.theportnoybrothers.com – The Portnoy Brothers official website. Retrieved 12 October 2023.