Baba Zula: Turkish alternative group founded in Istanbul

Baba Zula, also stylized as BaBa ZuLa, is a Turkish alternative musical group founded in Istanbul in 1996. The band creates a psychedelic sound drawing on a wide variety of influences and instruments. Its core sound is the saz, a Turkish bouzouki-like stringed instrument, and the group uses an approach to electric saz that combines it with retro and high-end electronic effects.

The music combines traditional Turkish instruments, electronica, reggae and dub. Levent Akman and Osman Murat Ertel have been with the band since its founding. The latest incarnation added Periklis Tsoukalas, Melike Şahin and Özgür Çakırlar.

Founding member Emre Onel was replaced by Coşar Kamçı in 2005, who was in turn replaced by Özgür Çakırlar in 2012. Live drawing artist Ceren Oykut joined in 2004 and left the band in 2010. Akman, Ertel and Onel originally formed BaBa ZuLa as a side project of the now disbanded psychedelic Anatolian rock group ZeN.

The group began performing internationally at the Kumanova Jazz Festival in 2003. In 2005 the band was featured in the documentary Crossing the Bridge by Fatih Akin. Baba ZuLa have performed at festivals including The Spirit of Tengri in Almaty, Kazakhstan; Images of Middle East, a multi-city Denmark tour; the Roskilde Festival in Denmark; the Sofia Film Festival in Bulgaria; the Klinkende Munt Festival in Belgium; Printemps de Bourges in France; the Cologne Triennale in Germany; the Şimdi/Now Festival in Germany; the Arezzo Wave Festival in Italy; the Venice Biennial in Italy; the Boost Festival in the Netherlands; the Festival Islâmico in Mértola, Portugal; and the Era Nowe Horyzonty in Wrocław, Poland.

Current members are Murat Ertel on lead vocals, electric saz, guitar, theremin, percussion and vox; Levent Akman on percussion, drum, machines vocals, gong and spoons; Esma Ertel on vokal and dans; and Ümit Adakale on darbuka, davul, bendir and perküsyon. Former members include Melike Şahin on vox from 2012 to 2018, Emre Onel on goblet drum and sampler from 1996 to 2003, Ceren Oykut on live video from 2004 to 2010, Çoşar Kamçı on goblet drum from 2003 to 2012, Periklis Tsoukalas on electric oud, vocals and synth from 2014 to 2022, and Özgür Çakırlar on darbuka, bendir, davul and percussion from 2012 to 2017. International guest musicians have included Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare; Alexander Hacke, bass guitarist from Einstürzende Neubauten; Brenna MacCrimmon, Canadian Turkish-Balkan folk musician and vocalist; Dr.Das (Asian Dub Foundation), an English band that plays a mix of rapcore, dub and ragga; Titi Robin, French composer and improviser; Tod A., bass guitarist; and Bugge Wesseltoft, Norwegian jazz musician, pianist, composer and producer.

Turkish guests have included Hüsnü Şenlendirici, clarinetist from Laço Tayfa; Özkan Uğur, Turkish rock/pop musician from MFÖ; Mehmet Güreli, Turkish writer-painter-musician; Sumru Ağıryürüyen; and Selim Sesler, clarinetist. The discography includes Tabutta Rövaşata, the soundtrack for Tabutta Rövaşata ("Somersault in the Coffin") by Derviş Zaim, released in 1996 on Ada Music; Üç Oyundan Onyedi Müzik in 1999 on Doublemoon; Psychebelly Dance Music (Ruhani Oyun Havaları) in 2003 on Doublemoon, mixed by Mad Professor; Duble Oryantal in 2005 on Doublemoon, mixed by Mad Professor; Dondurmam Gaymak, the soundtrack for Dondurmam Gaymak ("Ice Cream, I Scream") by Yüksel Aksu, released in 2006 on Rh Pozitif; Kökler in 2007 on Doublemoon; Gecekondu in 2010 on Doublemoon; 34 Oto Sanayi in 2014; XX in 2017; Derin Derin in 2019; Hayvan Gibi in 2020, recorded live direct-to-disc at Artone Studios in the Netherlands in August 2019; and İstanbul Sokakları in 2024.