About a decade ago, a group of musicians met by happenstance while working on a local theater project. Derya Yildirim met bassist/guitarist Antonin Voyant and keyboardist Graham Mushnik, and it didn’t take long for the trio to form a quartet with the addition of drummer Helen Wells. The newly formed group dubbed themselves Derya Yildirim & GRUP ŞİMŞEK, a psych rock collective whose Big Crown Records debut, Yarin Yoksa is set to arrive on March 14.
Yarin Yoksa translates to “If there is no tomorrow,” hinting at the themes that run through the LP. The album, produced by Leon Michels, is preceded by hypnotic singles like “Cool Hand” and “Yakamoz,” hinting at some of the band’s purest music to date.
Heavily influenced by their diverse roots, ranging from Anatolian folk to modern psychedelia, Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek is a marriage of different worlds, lending to their textured and nuanced approach to modern music. With Voyant and Mushnik hailing from France, Wells from South Africa, and Yildirim being raised in Germany, the band has coined the word “outernational” to best describe their sound.
The layers of those textures unravel in this new live video version of “Yakamoz” in which Glide is premiering below recorded at the iconic Diamond Mine Studio in Queens, New York. The group combines Peter Cat Recording Co.’s eclectic sounds and the seductiveness of Arooj Aftab. The single originally appeared as a B-side on the “Cool Hand” 7” from 2024 and will now land on the band’s upcoming release.
This live version of the band’s single reveals the intricacies of Yildirim’s writing. The softness of the performance cushions the blow of the band’s heartwrenching writing, and while the artist croons in her native tongue, their poetry in motion breaks language barriers. This live recording of “Yakamoz” has a more jazzy feel, an infectious energy that sways like an overgrown tree in a strong wind. The band’s use of a bağlama, a seven-string Turkish lute, lends to the quaint feel of the arrangement and how they can keep their four-piece sounding expansive by allowing their upbringing to be their main influence.
The release of Yarin Yoksa is about a month away, and the powerful live version of “Yakamoz” should be enough to hold everyone over. With a new home at Big Crown and Michels’s name being attached, Derya Yıldırım & Grup Şimşek’s third album is set to be a career-defining moment for the daring band.
