Riding a wave of fierce energy and acclaim generated by their show-stopping festival performances at Le Guess Who and Trans Musicales, Lalalar now unleash their hotly-anticipated debut album, Bi Cinnete Bakar. The brainchild of three of Turkey’s most active and innovative alternative artists – Ali Güçlü Şimşek, Barlas Tan Özemek and Kaan Düzarat – the album is a thrilling mix of punk energy, dark electronics and Turkish instrumentation and samples.

For listeners whose knowledge of Turkish music extends only as far as 70s Anatolian rock, Lalalar might come as a surprise. Though Ali, main songwriter, suggests that those psychedelic classics are “in the veins” of all three members, Lalalar are much more than just another retro outfit. Instead, they weave subtle samples of timeless Turkish folk music into their electronic stews.

In fact, the sounds of the 80s are a much more important point of reference for Lalalar – and for an underground Istanbul scene that for Ali says is currently fixated on “dark wave and dance.