B-Side Guys

Israeli blues artist Noya Sol doesn’t merely perform the blues—she embodies its contradictions. Released in early March, “Through the Blues” arrives as the latest offering from her “World of Illusions” project, establishing Sol as a compelling voice within a tradition that thrives on authentic emotional excavation.

The opening line—”If hope’s still alive, why is it hiding from me”—serves as the song’s emotional foundation. Sol begins with this fundamental questioning, immediately plunging listeners into the existential struggle between hope and despair that powers traditional blues. This searching quality permeates the entire composition, with each verse further exploring the shadows of doubt.

Musically, the track achieves what many contemporary blues artists attempt but few accomplish: honoring tradition without being consumed by it. Sol’s guitar work respects blues conventions while maintaining a conversational quality that mirrors her vocal phrasing. When she sings “Drowning in shadows, too dark to see,” the accompaniment becomes appropriately murky, creating textural depth that enhances rather than distracts from the lyrical narrative.

The recurring couplet—”Dreams may linger, but fear holds tight/I’m lost in a world where hope’s just a paint”—provides the emotional fulcrum of the composition. That final word, “paint,” offers a striking metaphor: hope as merely a surface coating rather than structural support. This cynicism, however, never feels affected. Sol delivers these lines with a lived-in authenticity that suggests personal acquaintance with such disillusionment.

Sol’s vocal performance navigates a careful path between technical prowess and emotional surrender. While her control is evident, she allows vulnerability to create micro-fractures in her delivery, particularly when confessing “The road feels endless in the cold of night.” These moments of controlled fragility establish an intimacy that purely technical singing could never achieve.

For an artist who has become “one of the most intriguing names in the jazz and blues scene in Israel,” this release demonstrates why Sol deserves attention beyond geographical boundaries. Her interpretation of blues idioms feels simultaneously respectful and personal—she’s internalized the tradition deeply enough to contribute meaningfully to its evolution.

“Through the Blues” ultimately succeeds because it doesn’t treat the blues as a musical genre but as an emotional state requiring careful navigation. When Sol concludes with “Angels may guide, but their voices grow faint,” she captures the essence of the blues tradition: acknowledging spiritual possibility while remaining grounded in earthly struggles. In her hands, this tension becomes not just audible but visceral.