Chanukah's Da Bomb

Here we are half way through the festival of lights. Weary after weeks of overplayed Christmas music and burnt out on Adam Sandler and the "Dreidel, Dreidel" song, Bostonist finds ourself craving some good 'ol Hebrew hip hop. Some down home funky Chanukah rap. So, before we light another candle on the menorah, we've got to break out Chutzpah's "Chanukah's Da Bomb" and los Hip Hop Hoodíos' "Ocho Kandelikas."

Hip Hop Hoodíos? Yes, the Hip Hop Jews (hoodíos as in “judío,” Spanish for Jew). Los Hoodíos are a Latino-Jewish music collective that dole out a spicy blend of hip hop, klezmer, cumbia, and Latin punk funk. Led by Josué Noriega and Abraham Veléz (Jews of Colombian and Puerto Rican ancestry, respectively), los Hoodíos debut Ep Raza Hoodia received a fair amount of critical acclaim when it was released a few years ago and, according to the group's website, has been "certified as the biggest selling Latino-Jewish hip-hop album of ALL TIME."

Los Hoodíos' new album, Agua Pa' La Gente, has been rockin' Bostonist's iPod as of late. And this week we've been repeatedly jammin' "Ocho Kandelikas," a punk funk update of the traditional Sephardic Chanukah folk song. (Watch Hip Hop Hoodios' Ocho Kandelikas video).

Produced by Happy Sanchez (Los Mocosos, Latin Soul Syndicate), Agua Pa' La Gente features guest appearances from members of Los Abandoned, the Jaguares, The Klezmatics, Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Santana, and Orixa. The group raps in English, Spanish and Yiddish with humor ("my nose is large and I'm in charge) and serious political commentary (the track "Agua Pa La Gente" (Water for the People) muses on the privatization of water rights by American corporations in Latin America). (See Hip Hop Hoodíos myspace music page).

On the lighter side there's Chutzpah, who bill themselves as "the world's first Jewish hip hop supergroup." While los Hip Hop Hoodíos political rap follows in the tradition of early 1990's Afrocentric Jewish rap group Blood of Abraham, Chutzpah traces the footsteps trode by parody acts like 2 Live Jews (featuring Dr. Dreidel and Ice Berg) and 50 Shekel. Brainchild of Los Angeles record producer Tor Hyams, aka Master Tav, Chutzpah includes co-conspirators Jerran Friedman (MC Meshugenah), and David Scharff (Jewdah). The group recently released a This is Spinal Tap style "mockumentary" DVD, Chutzpah — This Is?, featuring George Segal (that George Segal) as "legendary" rap producer Dr. Dreck.

The first (?) single off of the group's eponymous debut album is the tongue in cheek "Chanukah's Da Bomb."

Ya never gonna see a Hanukkah sale, There’s never gonna be a Jewish reindeer tale

Contributed by Matt Durutti / Top photo courtesy of Yarmulkebra