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Paris DJs Soundsystem presents the melody-driven sound of Marco Benevento

Paris DJs Soundsystem presents the melody-driven sound of Marco Benvento
(MP3 Podcast on www.ParisDJs.com) 2012-11-15

A new generation of keyboard players rose in the 90s starting with, of course, John Medeski (from Medeski, Martin and Wood), the undisputed king, the Jimi Hendrix of keyboards, but also Robert Walter (from The Greyboy Allstars), Brian Haas (from Jacob Fred Jazz Oddyssey), Page McConnell (from Phish), or Kyle Hollingsworth (from The String Cheese Incident)…

Then came the 2000s with Marco Benevento, one half of the Benevento/Russo Duo, co-founder of <>The Royal Potato Family label, and heir to Medeski's throne.

Marco is beyond talented, he played with so many different bands doing so many different styles, from straight forward jazz, to tripped-out jamband crazyness. Even funk, rock, reggae… nothing can resists his themes and melody-driven lines, tugging at your heartstrings like none other, with or without distorsion!

Marco's been a regular on the New York City contemporary, experimental jazz scene for years. He's performed with countless musicians including Matt Chamberlain, Charlie Hunter, John Medeski, Mike Gordon, Trey Anastasio, Eric Krasno, Wayne Krantz, John Ellis, Dave Dreiwitz, Marc Friedman, Reed Mathis, Bobby Previte, Ari Hoening, Terreon Gully, Brian Haas, DJ Olive, DJ Logic, Steven Bernsetin, Briggin Kraus, Lyrics Born, Mike Dillon, Les Claypool, Phil Lesh, Skerik, Johnny Vidacovich, Stanton Moore and others…

We gathered his complete discography, from the Jazz Farmers beginnings in 2002 and the Benevento-Russo Duo years until 2006, the featurings on albums from Brian Mitchell, Trey Anastasio, Matt Trowbridge, Everyone Orchestra or A.C. Newman (among others), to the supergroups GRAB (Gordon, Russo, Anastasio, Benevento), Bustle In Your Hedgerow, Garage A Trois, Surprise Me Mr. Davis, and of course his amazing solo career ("Live At Tonic" in 2007, "Invisible Baby" in 2008, "Me Not Me" and "Live In NYC: The Sulivan Hall Residency" in 2009, "Between The Needles and Nightfall" in 2010 and "TigerFace" in 2012).

After re-listening to that complete output, chronologically, the evolution in Marco Benevento's sound, the road he's taken with its twists and turns, always going forward, became more obvious, setting forth a vision for music that connects the dots between Medeski Martin and Wood, Arcade Fire, Tortoise, Brian Eno and Brad Mehldau. Yep, that unique!

Here's our 45mn mixed introduction to Marco Benevento's music.
We've also prepared a nice interview for you to read while listening to the mix - in english or en français!
Get on the bus and enjoy the ride.

Tracklisting :
01. Marco Benevento - Seems So Long Ago Nancy
(from 'Me Not Me' album, 2009 / The Royal Potato Family)
02. Garage A Trois - Dory's Day Out
(from 'Power Patriot' album, 2009 / The Royal Potato Family)
03. Nostalgia 77 feat. Josa Peit - Simmerdown (Grant Phabao Remix feat. Marco Benevento)
(from Paris DJs 'Virtual Releases' series, 2012 / Paris DJs)
04. Marco Benevento - Coffee Cold
(from 'Bene Live: April 2011' compilation, 2011 / The Royal Potato Family)
05. Garage A Trois - Assault On Precinct 13
(from 'Always Be Happy, But Stay Evil' album, 2011 / The Royal Potato Family)
06. Marco Benevento - Music Is Still Secret
(from 'Between The Needles and Nightfall' album, 2010 / The Royal Potato Family)
07. The Benevento/Russo Duo - Sunny's Song
(from 'Best Reason To Buy The Sun' album, 2005 / Ropeadope)
08. Marco Benevento - The Night Before October
(from 'Live At Tonic' album, 2007 / Ropeadope)
09. Marco Benevento - The Real Morning Party
(from 'Invisible Baby' album, 2008 / Hyena)
10. Marco Benevento - Fireworks
(from 'TigerFace' album, 2012 / The Royal Potato Family)

All the original cover artworks are available on the Paris DJs blog

Credits :
Selected by Djouls from the Paris DJs Soundsystem (parisdjs.com)
Mix and audio mastering by Grant Phabao (grantphabao.com)
Artwork by Ben Hito (facebook.com/benhito)

Links :
Marco Benevento : official | bandcamp | discogs | facebook | parisdjs | soundcloud | twitter | youtube
The Royal Potato Family : official | facebook | parisdjs | soundcloud | twitter | youtube Paris DJs : parisdjs.com | bandcamp | facebook | juno | pinterest | soundcloud | twitter | youtube


Todd Simon's United States of Dub

Todd Simon - The United States of Dub
(MP3 Podcast on www.ParisDJs.com) 2012-11-01

Todd Simon is a trumpeter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and performer living and working in sunny Los Angeles, CA. Todd has found a niche providing soulful horn and string sounds for countless projects, many of which have been featured on Paris DJs: The Echocentrics, Connie Price & the Keystones, the Quantic Soul Orchestra, Antibalas, Clutchy Hopkins, Madlib's Sound Directions, El Michels Affair, The Lions, Ocote Soul Sounds, Spanky Wilson, Breakestra, Flying Lotus, Mochilla Timeless with Mulatu Astatke and Arthur Verocai, Sugarman 3, Orgone, Nickodemus, Ohmega Watts, Amayo's Fu-Arkist-Ra, N.A.S.A., Mayer Hawthorne... His current projects include Adrian Younge's Venice Dawn, The Decoders, Todd Simon's Ethio-Cali Ensemble, and upcoming albums of The Delfonics, Ghostface Killah, CSS, Rhye and Quadron.
Following-up on our open invitation in the Clutchy Hopkins interview that never happened, Todd contacted us saying "I'd love to compile a specially-themed dj mix for you (as mentioned in the Clutchy interview, figure out a theme and I'll hook you all up!!!". We asked him if he was into the current American Dub and Reggae scene… Well Todd did a real investigative work, adding some information on each track he picked, and we had the full thing illustrated by our man Ben Hito, for your aural and visual pleasure.

I've been following posts and releases from Paris DJs for quite some time. Their eclectic tastes in World Music, DJ culture and new music have been a great resource for me over the years. Although I'm not that proud of the country I reside in, the US does supply some great Dub sounds. 'The United States of Dub' is a collection that features rarities only found on vinyl, brand new recordings that are finally being leaked, versions that might have been looked over and tracks that I've dug up from my vaults. Some of America's best Dub producers are showcased on this mix representing a sound that pays respect to Jamaica and the UK. One might not look to the US for Dub, but hopefully after listening to this mix you might want to dig deeper. (Todd Simon)

Tracklisting :
01. NeXt LeVeL Productions - Yabby You Tribute
(unreleased) info
02. Jazzanova feat. Paul Randolph - I Human (Jeremy Sole Dub)
(from 'I Human feat. Paul Randolph (Jeremy Sole Remix)' 7 inch, 2012 / Sonar Kollektiv) info | buy
03. Strikkly Vikkly (Ticklah/Victor Rice) - Isso
(from 'Redbud Dub 02' 7 inch, 2002 / Redbud) info (Ticklah) | info (V. Rice) | buy
04. Romanowski - Altar Dub
(unreleased) info | buy
05. The Lions - Cumbia Del Leon (Freeformer Toddy T's Psycho NuFi Dub)
(from 'White Label' digital compilation, 2008 / Ubiquity) info | buy
06. 4th Ave Rockers (Ticklah) with Ruffscott & Rob Symeonn - Move Along
(from 'Hi-Fidelity Dub Sessions presents Roots Combination' album, 2001 / Guidance) info
07. Peaking Lights - Cosmic Tides
(from 'Lucifer' album, 2012 / Mexican Summer) info | buy
08. NeXt LeVeL Productions - Juicy Skank
(unreleased) info
09. The Simple Citizens - Breakfast Dub
(from 'Early Morning' album, 2008 / self-released) info
10. Freeformer vs. Ticklah vs. Dub Is A Weapon - Journey Dub
(exclusive for Paris DJs - features members of Antibalas, Dub Is A Weapon, The Lions, The Decoders…) info
11. Roger Rivas - Organ Shakedown
(from 'Organ Versions Vol. 1' digital album, 2009 / self-released) info/download
Total time : 43:14

A track-by-track commentary and all the original cover artworks are available on the Paris DJs blog

Credits :
Selected and mixed by Todd Simon (toddsimonmusic.com)
Audio mastering by Grant Phabao (grantphabao.com)
Artwork by Ben Hito (facebook.com/benhito)

Links :
Todd Simon : official | discogs | facebook | myspace | soundcloud | twitter | youtube
Paris DJs : parisdjs.com | bandcamp | facebook | juno | pinterest | soundcloud | twitter | youtube

Direct download: Todd_Simon-The_United_States_Of_Dub.mp3
Category:Guests DJs -- posted at: 6:14pm EDT