Eliad Eliyahu, a musician from the northern city of Akko (Acre), has released a new music video from his latest album, Sky Glow.
The song Clouds, Eliyahu says, is about finding personal peace amidst the rush of day-to-day life. The video was filmed inside an Israeli train station.
"I'm a good friend of the trains," Eliyahu jokes, because he is often on them traveling from his home in Akko. He finds a different kind of peace on the train than at home.
"There is no cell phone, no dripping faucet, no Shabbat bulletins scattered on the table. I take the guitar and go to my second home, the train, and find long-awaited peace amongst the crowd," Eliyahu says.
Eliad Eliyahu wasn't always observant. He decided to assume a religious lifestyle during his army service, and he feels that his second album is connected to the change. "I was in the entertainment group in the army when I decided to make this change," he says. "All the songs I have on the album are stories about my life. There are songs I wrote and songs from Psalms and from the Song of Songs. One is written by Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook religious Zionist leader, poet and first Chief Rabbi of Israel. For me, it was a great achievement to do a song from Rav Kook and to let other people, both religious and non-religious, feel those kinds of holy words -- hareidi, Zionist, everyone."
Eliyahu was born and raised in Akko, the city which he refers to as "the city of the sea and the walls." Akko had an influence on his music as well.
"Akko for me is a very important and unique city. I think I will live here for the rest of my life. I am a member of a garin (seed group) of young religious families that came to make a positive change in the image of Akko."
"There has been tension here the last couple of years. Akko is a mixed city with Arabs and Jews. More and more Arabs move in and more and more Jews leave. To live here is a mitzvah. We have to do things for the community, help with education, art and theater. It's very important and I think it influences my music and myself. Every musician will say that where he lives influences his music. I think the walls and the sea, the mix of old and new and the history does something for you."
One of the songs on the new CD is a "love song" originally written about man's relationship to G-d. Eliyahu eventually dedicated it to his wife and performed it at his wedding.
"It's a song I wrote after I became religious. We hear many love songs all the time. I hope people can connect to the songs, even if they see it as a regular love song. But in the course of the song, it's obvious it means that I want to feel a connection to G-d."
Eliyahu has begun work on his third album and is planning a summer tour in the United States.
Clouds
by Eliad Eliyahu
Send me quiet these days
So I can get questions
Some wind coming at us,
and how Heaven,
gives me the answers
Send me the strength these days,
So I can receive music, and rise to Heaven's
Gates, open sky and melodies
For a past video interview with Eliad Eliyahu click here.