Inbal Perlmutter

Inbal Perlmutter (born in Rehovot, January 15, 1971 - died October 1, 1997) was an Israeli composer, musician, singer and lyricist, and a founding member of the band Ha-Mechashefot ("The Witches").

Perlmutter's music was influential to the Israeli music of the 1990s. She began her musical career in 1992 when she founded, along with Ifat Netz and Yael Cohen, the band Ha-Mechashefot. She continued producing solo works and numerous collaborations, both in Israel and abroad.

Perlmutter died in a car accident at the age of 26.

Ha-Mechashefot

The band began to perform in clubs around Israel, and got public notice on a TV show called "Songs of the Sea of Galilee", hosted by Naomi Shemer. Ha-Mechashefot performed a sensual version of Shemer's song "Kesem 'Al Yam Kinneret" ("Magic on the Sea of Galilee") which astounded both the audience and the host. This version was recorded in April 1993, and was released as a DJ record with cover art by Perlmutter.

In early 1994, the band released its first album, "Ad Ha-Oneg Ha-Ba" ("Till the Next Pleasure"). Perlmutter wrote the lyrics and composed nearly all the songs. Thanks to Korin Alal's arrangement and production, the band succeeded in creating an energetic guitar rock album which gained immense popularity and was certified gold. Following the album's release, the band had dozens of concerts. Some of them were held on Friday the 13th under the title "The Night of the Witches", and featured guest singers Korin Alal and Dana Berger.

In March/April 1995, Ha-Mechashefot released its second album, "Zmanim Muzarim" ("Strange Times"). This time they arranged and produced the entire album themselves. Again, Perlmutter wrote all the lyrics and composed all but one song. The album was less popular than their first.

The band continued holding concerts frequently and was often a warm-up act for Björk.

In April 1996, the band released its third album, "Ha-Mechashefot Mitkasot" ("The Witches Covers"), a collection of all the cover songs they recorded in their early days. The only popular cover not on this album was "Sweet Dreams"; Annie Lennox of the Eurythmics had refused to allow the band's version of her song to be released. In protest, Perlmutter distributed the song on an underground tape; on the cover, which she had designed, were inscribed the words "Shit Rights".

After the release of this album, Ha-Mechashefot became considerably less active, although they never officially announced that they were disbanding. They held their final concert in September 1996.