Sending “rock” waves through Turkey and the world for over 20 years, Mor ve Ötesi played to a jam-packed house last Saturday at Dorock XL in Kadıköy. Dorock’s new branch in Kadıköy is just what the name implies—extra-large—and was filled to the brim with hundreds of bodies ready to begin a spectacular evening with the amazingly talented post-rock Turkish idols of Mor ve Ötesi: Harun Tekin, Kerem Kabadayı, Burak Güven and Kerem Özyeğen. Their live performance of “Deli” from the 2008 album Başıbozuk won them international acclaim at the 2008 Eurovision contest, where the band came in seventh place with a total of 138 points in the final round.
Arriving 30 minutes after the doors opened, we made it just in time to see the band take the stage. Aside from the excitement of the opening, and despite the ominous presence of more than a few body guards, the crowd’s energy seemed awash with a cheerfully intoxicating vibe that was no doubt fueled by the relatively cheap and plentiful beer that nearly everyone had in hand.
Once they took the stage, the band launched head-first into one of their slower songs “Canlı Yayin.” What followed was a two-and-a-half-hour sweaty rage-fest during which the audience rocked out to 26 epic songs. The set list—almost legendary in its own right—was comprised of an unpredictable medley of songs. It included their most popular songs from the 2004 album Dünya Yalan Söylüyor, like “Cambaz” and “Bir Derdim Var,” and also songs that they haven’t played live for nearly 10 years, like “Beyaz” and “23” from their second album Bırak Zaman Aksın, which was released in 1999. They also emphasized that in honor of the venue’s location, they decided to play songs that were written in Kadıköy at Yeldeğirmeni.
Harun, armed with his signature purple guitar, had the crowd jumping and singing along from the first note right up until the last. True to Harun’s character, his stage banter included conversations ranging from the political to the comical. Halfway through the show, he announced he would try his hand at the keyboard. We watched in wonder as he modestly and quite successfully pecked away at the keys, grinning as if in that moment he was transformed into a kid again.
Mor ve Ötesi finished out the night with another one of their slow songs, “23,” which brought everyone back to earth. As we wandered out into the night, our minds revisiting the incredibly long and varied playlist, we reveled in the truly priceless show that Mor ve Ötesi had just put on.
