Pinhani are one of Turkish alt-rock’s great success stories. The band’s debut album İnandığın Masallar (2006) brimmed with potent folk-inflected melodies. But it was guitar-fuelled single “Hele Bi Gel”, chosen as the theme song for popular TV drama Kavak Yelleri, that catapulted them to stardom. Further contributions to the show’s soundtrack help Pinhani’s popularity. Their enduring charms, though, owe just as much to the expressive brass and woodwind arrangements, stirring lyricism and virtuosic nods to folk traditions that invigorate their stellar releases.