Out in the colored lights, the Gat brothers stood rather stiffly, not exactly smiling, hands pinned to their sides, wearing skullcaps and buttoned frock coats, sporting side curls and long beards, one brown, one gray.
They looked as if they had been beamed down to the wrong planet.
But lo and behold, the Gat brothers are now one of the most popular acts on one of the most popular shows in Israel, based on the ratings and scores they have received from viewers tapping an app that tallies votes instantaneously.
Their fame was born a few weeks ago, when they covered Simon & Garfunkel’s “The Sounds of Silence” and rocked out on the lyrics:
“The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls.
And tenement halls.”
The next week, they performed the Eagles’ “Hotel California,” with Gil, 37, jamming on electric guitar and Arie, 48, strumming an acoustic and singing in accented English.
For reasons that could fill a doctoral dissertation, Israelis love “Hotel California.”
Maybe it’s the line “You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.”
Israel’s borders with Lebanon and Syria are closed, Egypt is mostly off-limits and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan not a frequent destination for Israeli Jews.
Backstage before their performance, the Gats prayed, tuned their guitars and nibbled kosher nosh provided especially for them. The show’s producers have found a way to stay within the strictures of the brothers’ ultra-Orthodox beliefs.
“We don’t cross any red lines,” said Arie, who confesses that he is more of a drummer than a guitarist. “We have the blessing of our rabbis. The food is proper. We don’t see immodest dress.” And, very important: “We don’t see the women dancing.”
When female contestants perform, the Gat brothers retire to their dressing room, because it is against their beliefs to hear women sing.
The Gat brothers grew up in a less religiously observant household in Eilat on the Red Sea, listening to the Beatles and Dire Straits. When they committed to following an ultra-Orthodox path 16 years ago, they didn’t leave their Pink Floyd behind.
Not always popular
Ultra-Orthodox Jews are a topic of controversy in Israeli society these days. Many of the men do not work but study the Torah instead, which they see as the highest calling. They have large families and are often poor, which means they pay less in taxes. In their neighborhoods, they deface advertisements that depict women, and their elders want women to sit in the back of buses.
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