"Even though the band's quirky lyrics are half the fun, the music can still move people around the world. Their third album sold 3,000 records in Japan".

A renowned Israeli rock group that blends Mizrahi and Ashkenazi music, Teapacks is the headline performer of the day. This young group of musicians - who grew up in development towns in Israel's southern Negev desert - is a symbol of the new Israel, a marriage of east and west, young and old, Sephardi and Ashkenazi.

The cover of their new album, Radio Music Hebrew, is a cartoon of the band drawn by well known Israeli cartoonist Michel Kishka. Lead singer Kobi Oz explains the drawing, which is based on the band's lyrics:
"There is a big street party and there is a caricature of us performing. We have some Kassam rockets and we have the Sheehab which is the new Iranian nuclear rocket flying. And if you can see behind us, there is a kind of suicide terrorist waiting for his chance to blow up. We have the haredim and the students and the new Jamaican style Israelis. We have a lot of types and the album talks about all of them."
One of Teapacks influences is the 1970's Israeli band Kaveret, whose popular Poogy series had fun with Israeli culture. "This is pop music," says Oz. "It's not something of fashion, it's something of folklore. It's like a salute to the music people in Israel listened to forty years ago."

But the Teapacks sound is definitely original. They were one of the first bands in Israeli to incorporate rap in their music. "The artists in Israel are very verbal and they have to say a lot of things so rap is perfect for Israeli music," says Oz. "You can express your opinion in many words. It's not only rap about 'how big is my car,' it's rap about political opinions and telling funny tales. So our kind of rap is like a Jewish rap."
Along with the rap is the Mizrachi style of music Oz grew up with. He personally plays the accordion on many tracks, giving the funky rhythms a kind of kibbutz feel.
Even the band's name is a combination. "I drank a lot of tea when I wrote the songs," Oz explains. But the other meaning of their name is "tipex," which is the Hebrew word for White-Out. "We like to wipe up borders between styles and between people. We are trying to combine something new because we are bored of all the styles."
This combination has led to success. Even though the band's quirky lyrics are half the fun, the music can still move people around the world. Their third album sold 3,000 records in Japan.
While not particularly religious, the band maintains its Jewishness. The covers of all their albums feature a hamsa, the symbol of a hand often associated with the kabbalah. "The hamsa is the most ancient Jewish symbol. Like the hand that prevented G-d from striking the Jewish houses. So the hamsa is protecting life."

Having recently returned from a series of dates in America and England, the band is now preparing for a tour of Israel in support of their new album. One can expect can expect their sense of humor in the face of Israel's challenges to come through on stage as well. According to Oz, "For us it's like a big outdoor market, with a lot of vegetables and a lot of shouting. It's a fun experience to record and to perform in Israel. This is a funny country."

The Singer
 
Oz is a homunculus of a thing, a live-wire half-portion who apes around the stage very effectively. In fact you have to say Teapacks (named of course after the world famous Tunnocks 6 pack of teacakes) make the most of their abilities, filling the stage with an array of loony lookers all holding dear typical Israeli stubborn joie de vivre. They rap (of sorts), they mosh, they wear a selection of interesting hats. Fair play to Teapacks, I wish them well.

The Past
  
"Surely Israel aren't a Eurovision nation" I hear you cry. Well just because they aren't in Europe doesn't stop them from assailing eardrums every year. Just wait for Australia to have a go.
Israel, perhaps understandably, often use the Song Contest as a bizarre sort of peace propaganda media. But they find real success when they bin that idea, and go with cross-dressers or songs called Happy Birthday, Hallelujah, or A-Ba-Ni-Bi. These songs prove the immutable law, that songs involving the same word repeated ad nauseum always prevail.
So three wins for a new nation strictly outside of Europe isn't that shabby. A proud heritage and not one to smirk at, or else you'll have a wall built around your house, and patrolling troops will use your dog as target practice just to keep you on your toes.

The Song
 
I was watching "24" the other day, and would you credit it there was Jack Bauer, standing over a terrorist nuclear device with only one minute left to defuse it and the following line tumbled out of his anaesthetised lips "He's going to blow us up to biddy biddy kingdom come". Such is the respect Teapacks are held in when it comes to "Push the Button". Where do I start? The Iranians are up in arms (or rather, would like to be), as the song is clearly a dig at their democratically elected premier, Mr I'm Mad And I'm a Dad. The Americans have had a bit of a grumble too, but really like the Israeli's manor, so they've let it lie. The publicity has been worldwide, the fallout spectacular, but to me any song that includes the line "sluggish management" is a true pacifist joy to behold.

Overall

They've got the dreaded number 2 slot in the semi-final, but the nation is rubbing off on me, because I'm stubbornly refusing to accept the widely-held international opinion that this will bomb (geddit? clever eh?). Three types of music played interestingly enough if not actually well, "Push the Button" should suffice in getting them through.

In a Nutshell
"Don't want them to go Kaput Kaboom"

the philosopher says

deontology Study of moral necessity, duty, or obligation.
A deontological normative theory holds that moral worth is an intrinsic feature of human actions, determined by formal rules of conduct. Thus, deontologists like Kant suppose that moral obligation rests solely upon duty, without requiring any reference to the practical consequences that dutiful actions may happen have. Recommended Reading: Immanuel Kant, Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals, tr. by James W. Ellington (Hackett, 1993)

Teapacks feel a moral duty to perform a song based on nuclear profileration, without concerning them that this may tip the Iranians over the edge. Oh well, duty is duty.

Push the Button

The world is full of terror
If someone makes an error
He's gonna blow us up to biddy biddy kingdom come
There are some crazy rulers
They hide and try to fool us
With demonic, technologic willingness to harm

They're gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button

Il y a plein de souffrance
Dans la rue y'a trop d'violence
Et on a beaucoup de chance d'être vivant, même pas blessés
Avancement tactique de régime fanatique
Situation tragique qui me met les larmes aux yeux

And I don't wanna die
I wanna see the flowers bloom
Don't wanna go kaput kaboom
And I don't wanna cry
I wanna have a lot of fun just sitting in the sun
But nevertheless

He's gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button

Mesarim mitpotzetzim alay
Tilim mit'ofefim vegam noflim alay
Shotrim veganavim mitrotzetzim alay
Vehem koftzim alay, mitkartzetzim alay

Alelay, alelay, ta'ane li, Elohay, hay
Hasiyut haze arokh miday
Kshe'ani bekoshi khay vekulam mekavnim elay
Ze mukdam lashir ulay shenatati la khayay

Mishtara, tzevet hatzala
Hine ze bakdam, shir lelo salam
Adom ze lo rak tzeva, ze yoter kmo dam
Shuv otzer balev et hanshima
Shelo tifrakh akhshav haneshama
Hine milkhama, hine hanshama

Bum bum, ze ma shekore akhshav
Ben raketa lemacheta, ben tzofe lekatav
Ben mekhtaf lenekhtaf, ben gashum lesharav
Haslama bamadregot ola vetofeset kav

Klum, klum, ze ma shekulam osim
Kitzonim maktzinim vektzinim martzinim
Hatmimim mitmatnim, mamtinim lantunim
Ve'onim (shekulam khasrey onim)

Olam kulo demonim she'anakhnu stam piyonim
Veshampiyonim im zhitonim makhlitim ma sheyihiye
Nihul be'atzaltayim, oniya mele'a bemayim
Vekulam shotim lekhayim vetov'im ze letzad ze

Ulay ze khad miday
Tzarikh lashir shirey dkalim, shirey midbar lelo dgalim
Ani od khay, khay, khay
Ve'im yamshikh lihiyot mafkhid, rak az ani agid:

I'm gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button

Push the Button

The world is full of terror
If someone makes an error
He's gonna blow us up to biddy biddy kingdom come
There are some crazy rulers
They hide and try to fool us
With demonic, technologic willingness to harm

They're gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button

There's a lot of suffering
In the streets there's too much violence
And we stand a good chance of staying alive, even unscathed
Tactical advancement of a fanatical regime
A tragic situation that brings tears to my eyes

And I don't wanna die
I wanna see the flowers bloom
Don't wanna go kaput kaboom
And I don't wanna cry
I wanna have a lot of fun just sitting in the sun
But nevertheless

He's gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button

Messages are exploding on me
Missiles are flying are also landing on me
Cops and robbers are running all over me
And they're jumping me, getting on my case

Alas, alas, answer me, my God, hi
This nightmare is too long
When I'm barely alive and everyone is aiming at me
Maybe it's too late to sing that I gave her my life

Police, rescue team
It made it to the Kdam, a song with no peace
Red is not just a colour, it's more like blood
Again I'm stopping the breathing in my heart
So I won't drop dead
First it's a war, now it's resuscitation

Boom boom, that's what is happening now
In between a rocket and a machete, a viewer and a reporter
Underhanded opportunism and a kidnapee, rain and a heatwave
An escalation in the levels is setting up camp

Nothing, nothing, that's what everyone is doing
Hardliners become more extreme and officers more serious
The naive become more moderate, waiting for the data
And reply (that everyone is helpless)

A world full of demons where we are nothing but pawns
And champions with gambling chips decide the outcome
Sluggish management, a ship filled with water
And everyone is drinking to good health, and drowning

Maybe it's too sharp
We should sing palm tree songs, desert songs with no flags
I'm still alive, alive, alive
And if it keeps on being scary, only then will I say:

I'm gonna push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Push the button, push the button
Push the bu... push the bu... push the button
Prediction Semi Final 9th
Final 8th