Formed in Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall, 17 Hippies (which actually has 13 members) draws influences from the various Eastern European sounds that flooded the region at the time. Singing in French, German and English, they play a mix of traditional songs, covers of pop tunes adapted to a gypsy format and their own original material, which is influenced by Cajun, Balkan, Celtic and many other genres.

The band was conceived when founder Christopher Blenkinsop invited a group of musicians to get together and pick an instrument he or she had never really played before. Blenkinsop selected a ukulele (he had previously played bass in a rock band), while others went for the accordion, banjo or acoustic guitar. Throughout the 1990s, they performed at weddings, beer halls and other venues in their homeland mostly as an amateur group happy to play for a few beers.

The turning point came in 1997, when their first CD, Rock n' Roll 13, got distributed by French label Buda Musique, which also helped them find gigs around Europe. It was then—due to the necessity to schedule bookings in advance—that they were forced to abandon their laid-back format and establish a reliable core group. Eleven years and several lineups later, they’re finally being discovered by U.S. audiences thanks to a 2007 tour that took them to places like the Chicago World Music Festival and the Knitting Factory.

On Heimlich, their first U.S. release, they take on instrumental moments, rock-inflected songs and other beats, performing them in their own way. The title track was penned by accordionist Kiki Sauer and has nothing to do with the maneuver to save choking diners; rather, the lyrics deal with personal losses, and Sauer uses African thumb pianos for accompaniment. “Schattenmann” is a klezmer/gypsy party tune played at a breakneck pace and features an array of sounds, including spoons used as percussion.

In a live setting, 17 Hippies uses traditional tunes and instruments, taking a completely personal approach as they go. “Our audience in Berlin learned about these new old sounds by listening to us,” said Sauer. “The ‘traddies’ hated us. Now, in other parts of Europe, they call it ‘Berlin style.’”

-- by Ernest Barteldes