Elektro Hafiz

In the artist's words:

Elektro Hafız is a musician born and raised in Istanbul who recently moved to Cologne, Germany.

Elektro Hafız's sound is reminiscent of the hypnotic halay music that can be heard in the border region between Turkey, Iraq and Syria. When the driving energy of this music joins the overdrive fuzz tones of Hafız's sound, it no longer matters whether it's psychedelic or punk! Elektro Hafız loves to play with contrasts and create new compositions from them.

This open and experimental approach is still his trademark today, as is his charmingly provocative style, which is complemented by a good dose of humor. His diverse compositions are strongly influenced by his Istanbul roots, which is reflected in his use of the electric saz as well as the electric guitar - both well distorted and dirty.

His first solo album "Elektro Hafiz" was released in 2016 on the Spanish label "Guerssen" in vinyl format and in a double version: all the songs on the album were also released as dub/remix versions by various producers and DJs on a separate album. An open format of psychedelic music can be heard. The album featured collaborations with artists from various countries such as Kenya, France, Turkey, Switzerland, Austria and Germany. Within a short time, the album successfully landed on the newcomer list of the European music charts and attracted a lot of attention.

In 2018, as a producer and curator, he brought together alternative saz players from all over Europe to release the diverse compilation album "Saz Power" on Ironhand Records. In 2019, the latest album "Varyete" was released in cooperation with the legendary Istanbul beat tinkerer Grup Ses on the London label Zelzele Records.
The latest album "Style is prison" was self-released in November 2024.