Gotan Project

Gotan Project
Picture: http://www.gotanproject.com/

Wherever you are, I hope you are enjoying this very special time of year. I wish you and yours the very best of the season! However, the Jazz Essentials Spotlight is taking no holidays. 

This week we're going to listen to some Electrotango, its just like it sounds; tango music with a strong modern electronic influence. The group is based in Paris but its members come from all over the world, one member is from Argentina, another from Switzerland. Their name came from a reversal of syllables, reversing Tan-Go, you get Go-Tan ("Gotan Project", last.fm).

 Their music has been featured in several films and television shows. For instance, "Santa Maria" and "Diferente" were both heard in the movie Knight and Day which starred Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz, "El Capitalismo Foraneo" was featured in Ocean's Twelve ("Gotan Project," Wikipedia).

LINKS:
"Santa Maria":https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S98-BIpzZuk 
"Diferente": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9W5S-JqQ5SQ
"Vuelvo Al Sur": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHcDIs8hwhU
"El Capitalismo Foraneo" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feMJx8ldhbQ

REFERENCES:  
"Gotan Project." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotan_Project

"Gotan Project." last.fm Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Gotan+Project

Nostalgia 77

Ben Ladmin (Nostalgia 77)
Photo: http://nostalgia77.bandcamp.com/

Ben Ladmin, known to the world as Nostalgia 77 describes his sound as "a combination of soul and jazz composition with computer based production techniques."  His background in producing hip hop beats through sampling the jazz that he loved inspired Ladmin to make his own jazz. Experimenting with funk, soul and hip hop, Nostalgia 77's 2007 album "Everything Under The Sun" won the Jazz Album of The Year award at the BBC Worldwide Awards. Nostalgia 77 has received much acclaim for partnering with singer-songwriter Josa Peit, which introduced folk and blues into Nostalgia's sound.

Ladmin has also produced albums for the likes of Jamie Cullum and singer-songwriter Lizzy Parks. 

LINKS:
Covering The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNpidAAMQSo

Featuring Josa Peit, "Sleepwalker": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSidRczWNpU

"Quiet Dawn": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0GJlVfEEyo

REFERENCES:
"Nostalgia 77." Retrieved from: http://www.futureboogie.com/artists/nostalgia-77/

Jazz Liberatorz

Jazz Liberatorz
Photo: cluboid.com

DJ Damage, Dusty and Madhi met and formed the Jazz Liberatorz via DJ Damage's radio show in 1999. Since then, the jazz rap group has collaborated with the likes of Mos Def and Fatlip. 








Their music makes light of their love for classic jazz. This is especially notable on their 2008 album, Clin d'oeil, in particular the title track:
"Quincy Jones, McCoy Tyner, Grant Green
Wes Montgomery, Elvin Jones, Miles Davis
Eric Gale, Pharoah Sanders, Freddie Hubbbard
Billy Higgins, Jimmy Smith, Wayne Shorter
Ahmad Jamal, Thelonius Monk – all big influences
For what it is that we do
And what it is that we are
As we take our stance in music"

 LINKS:
Interview with the band: https://www.cluboid.com/artist/jazz-liberatorz/
 "Clin d'oeil": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PemH6O-qr-k
"Blue Avenue": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFs03oAx9ME
"Ease My Mind": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3u7PDGzH48

REFERENCES:
"Jazz Liberatorz-DJ & Artists" Retrieved from: https://www.cluboid.com/artist/jazz-liberatorz/
"Jazz Liberatorz." last.fm Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Jazz+Liberatorz?ac=Jazz%20Liberatorz

Your thoughts

Hey, it's Karim Mosna. I'm looking for your thoughts on Jazz Essentials as we move into a new year. Can you please fill out a quick survey, it should only take a few minutes. I would really appreciate it. Thanks for listening and all the best! Here's the link: https://apps.facebook.com/my-polls/qcxncv 

Tok Tok Tok

Photo:http://www.toktoktok.de/e/gallery.html

Their music is most commonly described as "acoustic soul," but the jazz flavour and influence is undeniably in their music as they strive to pair a beautiful melody with groove. They're perhaps best known for their take on Lou Reed's "Walk On The Wild Side." The band broke up last year as lyricist, Tokunbo Akinro, and composer Morten Klein wanted to pursue solo projects. Their album "About" won the French "grand prix SACEM for singing and composition" as well as the  "German Jazz Award."











LINKS:
"Walk On The Wild Side" (Lou Reed Cover): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLeqnPJqmhI
"Get Away": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYNYT2Y47Ko
"I Wish" (Stevie Wonder Cover): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFGSomlM1cU


REFERENCES:
"Tok Tok Tok" Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Tok+Tok+Tok

Benny Sings

Benny Sings
Photo: last.fm

He is the winner of the Essent Award, he has received airplay on BBC Radio 1 and 2, and his song "Little Donna"  was featured in an episode of the HBO Series "Girl." Dutch pop Artist, Benny Sings has met international success and acclaim. His catchy sound makes you wanna clap your hands and it's quite hard to get his catchy tunes out of your head. Evidence below: 

LINKS:
"Little Donna": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSG1mFLz8ds
"Get There": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rShcvMze_k4&list=PL5Y1-wcOujLo_u7NzxbqVii5scYchhx8e
"Coconut": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m87rWvonmz4&index=5&list=PL5Y1-wcOujLo_u7NzxbqVii5scYchhx8e


REFERENCES:
"Benny Sings-Bio." Retrieved from: http://www.bennysings.com/bio

I'm back!

A Livingroom Hush by Jaga Jazzist Album Cover
Photo: ninjatune.net

Hey, it's Karim Mosna, glad to be back with another Jazz Essentials spotlight! Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing the award-winning trumpeter Brownman Ali, you can read more here: http://www.ignitenews.ca/a-tribute-miles-davis-would-approve-of/

The band was started by teenaged brothers, Lars and Martin Horntveth in 1994. They are Influenced by everyone from John Coltrane to Talk Talk to Aphex Twin and Stereolab. Today, they're a nine piece band whose sound doesn't seem to know any boundaries.

This week, we're looking at an experimental band from Norway who was recognized by the BBC in 2002 when their album A Livingroom Hush was named the best jazz album of that year. Popular Texas rock band, The Mars Volta consider Jaga Jazzist one of their favourite bands.

LINKS:
From A Livingroom Hush "Animal Chin": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVIFUQV20NM

From A Livingroom Hush "Airborne": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0nHo1IdQ6E

REFERENCES:

"Jaga Jazzist." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2014. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaga_Jazzist

The Dining Rooms

This week the spotlight is on a Milan-based duo called: The Dining Rooms. The duo is made up of Stefano Ghittoni and Cesare Malfatti. Both were originally members of the punk/new wave scene, having played in underground bands. Ghittoni, became the resident DJ at Milan's Maggazzini Generali and would create the original sound that is The Dining Rooms ("The Dining Rooms, n.d.), A sound that contains elements of ambient, electronic and nu jazz ("The Dining Rooms, 2013"). 



LINKS:
"M. Dupont": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLcgB4dHQ2s
"Tunnel" feat. Sean Martin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyaNDq3pqn0
"Dreamy Smiles" feat. Anna Clementi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FrBcwoTPOM
"Thin Ice (Paolo Fedreghini and Marco Bianchi remix): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YciNBk9pMeE

REFERENCES:

"The Dining Rooms." last.fm. Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/The+Dining+Rooms

"The Dining Rooms." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 2013. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dining_Rooms

Slow Train Soul

Slow Train Soul
Photo Credit: last.fm

Their music has been featured in the US hit series ‘Six Feet Under’ and HBO’s ‘Entourage’ and have been featured on several Nu Jazz compliations including the Saint Germain Des Pres Cafe CD's. Slow Train Soul is a duo with multi-instrumentalist Morten Varano and vocals from Lady Z ("Slow Train Soul"). 

What do they sound like? These quotes sum it up for you....

“If you like Massive Attack, Meshell Ndegeocello or Shirley Bassey’s work with the Propellerheads, you’ll dig their work.” BETTER PROPAGANDA ("Soul Train Soul", n.d.)


“Imagine Sade fronting Portishead and you’re close to the evocative sound these two create. Its luxurious, beautifullly imagined and stellar debut that shows tremendous potential for Slow Train Soul.” ALLMUSIC GUIDE  ("Soul Train Soul", n.d.)



Now have a listen for yourself:


"Trail of Dawn": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zobBNQgXcAw

"Mississippi Freestylin": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4VUFIfrEUQ

"Golddiggah": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvaA8tS6cPI

"Naturally": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JAW3_L_Irw

"Inna City Woman": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGlNYycxg5I


REFERENCES:
"Slow Train Soul." (n.d.) In Facebook. Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/SlowTrainSoul/info


"Slow Train Soul." last.fm. Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Slow+Train+Soul

Yonderboi

Yonderboi
Picture: gigwise.com

It's our first artist in the spotlight from Hungary! Composer, producer and visual artist, Laszlo Fogarasi, known to the music world as Yonderboi was born in September, 1980. In 1998, While still a high school student, he released his first song, it was an instrumental cover of one of the Doors' best known songs, "Riders On The Storm," titled "Pink Solidism." Some of his music was licensed to Western European Compilations which would soon lead to a record deal from a German label. He would record his debut album, "Shallow and Profound" on his own shoestring budget. How small? Well the equivalent of about $300 US Dollars. Released in 2000, That album went on to pioneer the emerging trip hop sub-genre and would score a single "Pabadam" which would go on to be a big hit on Gilles Peterson's BBC Radio show (YONDERBOI, n.d.) 

At the 2009 Berlin Film Festival, Yonderboi notably collaborated with film director, Peter Greenaway for an audio-visual show. (YONDERBOI, n.d.)



LINKS:
"Riders on The Storm (Pink Solidism)": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ea4VDSRaFY
"Pabadam": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukV69Dm6KQw
"Ohne Chanteuse": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=butlFTTcMAc
Clips from Peter Greenaway Collaboration: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCjuCgj-EIE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9YVKH2hbaI

REFERENCES:
"YONDERBOI."(n.d.) In Facebook.
Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/yonderboi/info

Pink Martini

Thomas Lauderdale & China Forbes of Pink Martini

Photo: http://oregonmusicnews.com/2010/01/22/aladdins-songs-for-haiti-featuring-lauderdale-storm-cool-nutz-pcp-more-raises-over-150000/

1994 in his hometown of Portland, Oregon, Thomas Lauderdale was in politics, with a long-term plan to be mayor. Attending political fundraisers, something bothered him, no it wasn't the people, it wasn't the subject of the fundraisers, but the music that played at these events. He considered it lackluster, and un-neighbourly. Lauderdale wanted to create an alternative soundtrack to political fundraisers: He wanted a beautiful and more inclusive soundtrack. So he founded the group Pink Martini and would be the pianist ("Pink Martini - Biography").

He called up Harvard classmate, China Forbes and together they began composing songs. In 1997 Sympathique, ("Je ne veux pas travailler") would become their signature anthem. "Pink Martini - Biography").

Pink Martini is very very hard to pigeonhole, as their music crosses a variety of genres and lead vocalist Forbes sings in at least 12 different languages ("Pink Martini - China Forbes"). 



LINKS:
Music Video for "Sympathique": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLaY4aksfRo\
Fun tune!, "Donde Estas, Yolanda": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOWqQsOwzjw
"Brazil": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pn5SpcZWeI


Thomas Lauderdale himself tells "The Story of Pink Martini": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lu15HkoHWM

Pink Martini Interview on The Paul O' Grady Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3xpHaCjxpc



REFERENCES:
"Pink Martini - Biography." 2014. Retrieved from: http://pinkmartini.com/about/

"Pink Martini - China Forbes." 2014. Retrieved from: http://pinkmartini.com/member/china-forbes/

DJ Kormac

Hailing from Dublin, DJ Kormac has always been fascinated with the music of a bygone era. As posted on his website, " The origins of DJ Kormac’s recorded output can be found in dusty second-hand stores and junk shops where he spent countless hours unearthing archaic and forgotten music ("All About DJ Kormac")."

Kormac would breathe new life into these forgotten records through sampling and adding an infectious, irresistible beat to carry the tune ("All About DJ Kormac")."




Photo: http://www.djkormac.com/

Just listen below for evidence, and a shout-out if you can identify the muppet in 
"Scratch Marchin": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwO-76itH8k 

Comment below.


LINKS:
Listen at 0:20 and identify the muppet! in "Scratch Marchin'": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwO-76itH8k
"Show Time": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s33UYXCO3dc
"Wash My Hands": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVgehLqwNUc
"Big Bad Trumpet Player": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZbR6w0Y7xU


REFERENCES:
"All About DJ Kormac." 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.djkormac.com/about/

Dimitri From Paris

Yes, after a week's hiatus the spotlight returns! Oh and this week's artist is sure to satisfy that musical appetite of yours. He was born in Istanbul, Turkey, but would grow up in France (hence the "From Paris"). As a 70s child, he would "cut and paste" samples from disco songs heard on the radio and would create tapes ("Dimitri From Paris: BBE"). A decade later, he'd be the DJ, working for popular radio stations in France. Then, in the 90s he would record soundtracks, remixes, and finally in 1996 his debut album, "Sacrebleu." "Sacrebleu" achieved international success selling several hundred thousand copies and was named "Album of The Year" by UK Magazine, Mixmag. Sacrebleu is actually a french curse by the way. Recalling his childhood, his music caries a strong disco and funk influence, mixed with contemporary electronic styles like downtempo and house, he is sometimes referred to as "The French Ambassador of House Music (Dimitri From Paris Discography)." But, some of his tracks carry a heavy influence from 50s/60s jazz, just listen to the links below...

LINKS:

I think you'll get a kick out of this tune: "Une Very Stylish Fille": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWdr-ohVmOc

"Live Jazz": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HDWXdU9M0o

REFERENCES:
Photo: www.contactmusic.com
"Dimitri From Paris Discography." 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.discogs.com/artist/1060-Dimitri-From-Paris

"Dimitri From Paris: BBE." 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.bbemusic.com/artists/666/Dimitri%20From%20Paris#.VC8wOildVbw

Staying local this time: Afternoons In Stereo

Looking at an artist from my hometown of Hamilton, Ontario this week. Greg Vickers, a Canadian musician, graphic designer and radio host is behind the project Afternoons In Stereo. Listening to Afternoons In Stereo, you can expect a modern electronic sound that is grounded in jazz and funk. Afternoons In Stereo has released five albums to date, two of which won at the Hamilton Music Awards. Vickers' radio show, called Urban Modernists mixes nu with classic jazz, fusion and funk. It airs on McMaster University's 93.3 CFMU Thursdays at 10:30 pm EST.

LINKS:

With over 125,000 hits, "Soul Sugar": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fGxmSfjD7k

Has a TV theme sound to it, "Tinto Brass": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4DDb48SbX8

"Ocean Floor" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJYTxozTn-8

"Turtleneck" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyrKmhhPFfg

93.3 CFMU: http://cfmu.msumcmaster.ca/

Artist Website: http://www.afternoonsinstereo.com/

REFERENCES:

"Afternoons In Stereo." 2014. Retrieved from: http://www.discogs.com/artist/143089-Afternoons-In-Stereo

Gramatik

Born in Slovenia, Denis Jasarevic's musical adventure began at the age of three, when his mother would catch him listening to American jazz, funk and soul on the radio and his older sister's cassette tapes. Later, he would discover the hip-hop culture and was already producing beats on his PC at age thirteen. Adopting the stage name Gramatik, he would share his tracks through the online store Beatport, which helped his career take off ("Gramatik"). 

Jasarevic is a big advocate of file sharing.  He explains, "As an artist that based his entire career on the platform of free file sharing, I'm dedicating it to the fight against severe internet censorship bills we've been hearing about so much in the past months. Bastards have been trying to cripple the internet on a global scale with bills like ACTA/SOPA/PIPA and I'm sure there's more of them coming, so this one goes out for spreading awareness! Reject them all, they will never stop the sharing, the Internet is our realm, DIGITAL FREEDOM ("Gramatik")!"

Just for fun, here is what Gramatik says on his Facebook bio:

"Hi I'm Gramatik. This is my page. I make music sometimes. But most of the time I just like to smoke weed. And then download my favourite TV shows illegally. My favourite colour is black and I'm not a Vegan. I have a moustache. Do you liek me yet? (Facebook)"

LINKS:

Old is New Again, Gramatik re-imagining The King Cole Trio's "Hit That Jive Jack": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m2zGncgLjw

"Just Jammin': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYKRPzOi1zI

REFERENCES:
"Gramatik." 2014. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gramatik

"Gramatik." (n.d.) Facebook. Retrieved September 13, 2014 from: https://www.facebook.com/gramatik/info

Caravan Palace

Hailed as the apostles of electro swing (Facebook), Caravan Palace formed as a Paris based trio in 2005 when the three members were hired by a film production company to create soundtracks for silent pornography films ("Caravan Palace").

But, they would soon change direction after meeting music producer Loïc Barrouk who booked gigs and set up recording time. The group would then expand to a seven-piece; three of which were found via MySpace ("Caravan Palace").

Their sound morphed into electro swing with a gypsy jazz flavour, with influences ranging from legendary gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt to contemporary electronic stars Daft Punk ("Caravan Palace").

In 2007, the band was at its peak and some real magic happened. As posted on their Facebook page, "their breakout song, Jolie Coquine is playing everywhere. The record is released a year later and it's an immediate hit. They soon tour France and Europe. The show peaks at the Olympia. The room is packed, people go crazy...listening to swing. This has never happened before (Facebook)."


LINKS: 
Video for the breakthrough hit "Jolie Coquine": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE7XkaFFtGE

A personal fave, "Bambous": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpcWyogd8DY

"Dramophone": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7lxd7RL1To

Live performance of "Brotherswing": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YR-AvTDctk



REFERENCES:
Caravan Palace. 2014. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caravan_Palace

Caravan Palace. (n.d.) Facebook. Retrieved September 5, 2014 from: https://www.facebook.com/CaravanPalace/info

Who Is Will Holland?

Will Holland can play guitar, bass, piano, organ, saxophone and more. His music is influenced by trip hop, soul, bossa nova, salsa, funk and traditional jazz. Unlike a lot of Nu Jazz, the bulk of his recordings are original with minimal sampling ("Will Holland).


Holland's father was an important part in helping his son get his music career started. How? Well, his father was a folk singer and had a background in computer programming. His father introduced him to home recording, which started his experimentation with music ("QUANTIC").

Holland records under aliases including: Quantic, Quantic Soul Orchestra and The Limb Twins and collaborates with vocalists including: soul singers Alice Russell and Spanky Wilson. Holland hails from Worcestershire, England, but would later re-locate to Colombia where he set up his own analogue recording studio ("Will Holland").

A collaboration with New York City DJ/Producer Nickodemus resulted in the very catchy and instantly likeable song, "Mi swing es tropical" that was featured in an Apple Ipad commercial ("Will Holland").


LINKS:
From the Ipad Commercial "Mi Swing Es Tropical": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa6R9Z576Yg

It's neat animation, but a little bloody, "Not So Blue": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBft8qY6caE

Featuring Alice Russell, "The Sound Of Everything": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBuL1J4qXGI


REFERENCES:
"Quantic." Retrieved from: http://www.quantic.org/biography

"Will Holland." Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_Holland

3 years of Jazz Essentials

Hard to believe it, but Jazz Essentials has been on the air for 3 years! The show has gone through a lot of change since it first aired. 

Here's a quick story that helped to inspire the show's new direction: In radio we do something called airchecks. How an aircheck works is: your boss sits down with you and listens to one of your shows and critiques it. The show he was critiquing began with good ol' Bing Crosby (see pic. above) singing "Ol' Man River." My boss began yawning (he had the most pronounced yawn), he skipped ahead and skipped some more, until he heard the beat of "Rose Rouge" by St. Germain. Immediately, he lit up and exclaimed "play more of this stuff!"

When I began the show, the only Nu Jazz artists I was aware of were: Koop, Us3 and St.Germain (all who had achieved worldwide recognition and acclaim); these were the only Nu Jazz artists that were occasionally mixed in with the traditional jazz. Louis Armstrong, Diana Krall, Oscar Peterson, Miles Davis, Nat King Cole and Pat Metheny were among the artists most played on my show in the first year. 



After a little research and digging, I discovered there was an abundance of Nu Jazz that was refreshing, memorable and simply put, fun!

In the second year of the show, more and more Nu Jazz was added until it became the dominant sound of the show. It is rare to hear Nu Jazz on the radio which further inspired me to push the show further in that direction. Who knows, maybe it'll catch on?

We will celebrate on the radio show this Sunday Morning 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on 101.5 the HAWK. Click Listen Live at http://www.1015thehawk.ca/

I'm looking forward to another year of Jazz Essentials,
Thanks for listening and reading,
Karim Mosna

LINKS:
The song that got my boss excited, "Rose Rouge" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRpKKBmeqV4

BONUS: A little 'Bing', https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XogekAqnkA

Duran Y Garcia

Uno, Due, Tre... They're an Italian trio whose music is chilled, yet has a catchy groove with a traditional jazz influence (Duran Y Garcia). Duran Y Garcia is signed to popular Italian label Irma Records who is also behind the soundtrack for the popular American TV Series "Sex and the City" (Duran Y Garcia).

LINKS:
"Round Midnight": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyESWmqly4g
"Old Fashioned Thief": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKMZD5Mvn5k
"Heavy Piano": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoVLruqld08
"Night In Paris": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SofSxKnpfEA

REFERENCES:
"Duran Y Garcia." Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Duran+y+Garcia

Mr.Scruff

His real name is Andy Carthy, his stage name was inspired by his scruffy facial hair, as well as his trademark loose-lined drawing style seen on his self-designed cover albums and music videos. Mr.Scruff has been DJing for 20 years mixing electronica, house, trip hop and nu jazz. He is known for his marathon sets which can last over 6 hours. As a resident DJ at Manchester Club, the Music Box, he sold tea with proceeds going to charity.  Mr.Scruff has since developed a reputation for being the DJ with the teashop and runs an online tea company, called "Make Us A Brew"("Mr.Scruff"). Does it get more British than that?

LINKS:

"Get A Move On" (Extended): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik--d9Nhcb8

"Donkey Ride": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLeD2ZdIXM0

"Kalimba": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uyF_RoXAQg

Crate Diggers Interview, Mr.Scruff talks about his discovery of electro music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSje30D7BNY (10:35 to 11:22)

Crate Diggers Interview, Mr.Scruff on Analog vs. Digital: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSje30D7BNY (19:19 to 21:30)

Crate Diggers, Mr.Scruff takes you through his record collection (FULL INTERVIEW):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSje30D7BNY


REFERENCES:
"Mr.Scruff." Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mr._Scruff

Tosca

I foreshadowed this week's spotlight on my Kruder & Dorfmeister post from last week which ended with, "Dorfmeister also works on a side project that is also played on my radio show, Jazz Essentials called Tosca." 

Richard Dorfmeister and Ruper Huber met in school and would experiment with tape machines, Indian Music and poetry under the name Dehli9. The duo would separate and then regroup in 1994 under the name Tosca (Tosca(band)).

Tosca is generally categorized in the electronic subgenre called: downtempo. Downtempo music is generally chilled electronic music that in Tosca's case has a jazz aesthetic (Downtempo). 

To date, Tosca has released 6 highly critically acclaimed albums (Tosca(band)).

LINKS:
"Pyjama": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7JJAceB-s4
"Chocolate Elvis": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1r7TMJBW61U
"Heidi Bruehl": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plzbsd-nC1w

REFERENCES: "Tosca (band)." Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tosca_(band)

"Downtempo." Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Downtempo

Kruder & Dorfmeister

Just like Simon & Garfunkel, they're a duo. Except they're from Vienna, Austria, and they're far removed musically. But, they mimicked Simon & Garfunkel's "Bookends" cover artwise on their 1993 EP, "G-Stoned" as you can see above. Kruder & Dorfmeister are best known for their chillout remixes that are inspired by classic jazz and bossa nova. They also own their own recording studio named G-Stone Records. Dorfmeister also works on a side project that is also played on my radio show, Jazz Essentials called Tosca.

LINKS:
"High Noon" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lqF7S2ifBw
"Definition" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ora8MYUieo
Tosca-"Pyjama" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7JJAceB-s4

REFERENCES:

"Kruder & Dorfmeister." Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Kruder+&+Dorfmeister

"Kruder & Dorfmeister." Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kruder_%26_Dorfmeister

Stephane Ronget

Congratulations! You get a two-in-one this week, one man responsible for two ultra cool Nu Jazz projects. Stephane Ronget (a.k.a. Rongetz) is a French composer, producer and trumpeter. The first band he put together in the early 2000s was the Metropolitan Jazz Affair (RONGETZ). Their music is described as a soul-jazz connection, and as crossover jazz (Metropolitan Jazz Affair). Their music has been featured in over 40 compilations! In 2007,  Rongetz started a second group and named it after himself, The Rongetz Foundation. To date, The Rongetz Foundation has released 4 studio albums, and has collaborated with the likes of The Jazz Messengers, and Gregory Porter (RONGETZ). The beauty of Rongetz's music is that it's catchy, memorable, yet chilled at the same time.

LINKS:
Metropolitan Jazz Affair, "Find A Way": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=601mpZUTOK4
Metropolitan Jazz Affair, "Everybody Knows": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJWcrbAfarI
Rongetz Foundation, "Almost": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpxNIoLvQus

REFERENCES:
"Metropolitan Jazz Affair." Retrieved from: http://www.last.fm/music/Metropolitan+Jazz+Affair
"RONGETZ." 2014. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RONGETZ