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
