20pr1nc3.com

Whatever his intentions actually are when he acts, the results tend to further distance himself from his fans to the point we morph into spurned lovers.  Although we actually do cling to any new info we can get our hands on, new Prince news is often met with a wryly raised eyebrow and a standard setting of scepticism, be it a new tour, music, shutting down fan sites, etc.  In this case, however, the news is surrounding his brand new web site.

What could be wrong with that you may ask, it’s just a web site?!  Well, here’s where the scepticism kicks in:  this isn’t his first web site.  In fact, there appears to be an ever-growing list of web sites that start up then promptly close, with the most recent case being the web site that coincided with the release of his 33rd studio album, LOtUSFLOW3R (lotusflow3r.com), before that was mplsound.com, before that was 3121.com, ...  Reasons for the site's closures seem to never really be clear but the closure of the Lotus Flower site, if memory serves me correctly, tied in to now infamous comments Prince made about the 'internet being over'. 

... But here we are in 2013 and the internet is back it seems along with Prince's apparent endorsement of it.  The site seems to be in its early stages still but there is a new track featured, entitled 'Screwdriver' plus a pride-of-place placement for Andy Allo.  Prior to this site, Andy Allo's music had practically passed me by but there is an album released last year, produced by Prince. and featuring Maceo Parker and Trombone Shorty, so I'll definitely need to get my hands on that one fairly soon. 

Keep your eyes peeled for further info appearing on the Prince site and hopefully the release of a brand new album this year too!  In meantime, check the site out for yourself...

http://20pr1nc3.com/

 

The Third Coast Kings: Spicy Funk [Interview]

Written by Imran Mirza

The Blue-in-Green Sessions is proud to say we’ve covered soul and funk music from all over the world – starting out in the UK, we’ve had the pleasure of Nick Pride & The Pimptones, along with The Baker Brothers; we’ve been to Germany, courtesy of The Whitefield Brothers; Australia with The Liberators; and Italy via Italian duo, Simon Maccari and Andrea Bellentani, aka the Diaphanoids, aka Blackula.  But every now and then, you just have to go home. 

Now, it would probably be a stretch to describe Detroit, as the ‘birthplace of soul music’ but it certainly has a history and heritage so rooted in the genre that it still seems like an appropriate tagline.  Motown’s 60s influence doesn’t really need reinforcing here, but Michigan would go on to boast so much more than the hugely successful crossover sound – Little Willie John, Jackie Wilson, The Winans and the grittier and funkier sounds of The Propositions all have a hand in establishing its intricate soul history.  Fast forward to 2012 – adding to that rich musical tapestry, we have The Third Coast Kings.  

Formed in 2007 by the band’s drummer and leader, James Keovongsak, following an application for musicians via Craigslist, the 8-member outfit have gone on to draw strong comparisons to James Brown, but been able to introduce enough of their own sound to the mix to have people eagerly coming back for more. 

Record Kicks would go on to release the band’s first single in 2010, ‘Give Me Your Love/Tonic Stride’, which became a massive declaration of the band’s presence and went on to attract all the right attention from fans as well as influential DJs, BBC’s Craig Charles and Adrian Gibson.

Thankfully, fans now have more than a few sparkling songs scattered between compilations, and the strength of the band’s live shows to rely on.  Headed up by their first single, ‘Spicy Brown’, Third Coast Kings debut full-length album finally sees the light of day five years after the band was originally formed.  With a strong mix of fiery instrumental numbers interspersed with tracks featuring a one-of-a-kind vocalist in Sean Ike, the band’s promise has officially been realized in what is hopefully the first of many more and consistent releases.

Third Coast King, James Keovongsak, took time out to chat with The Blue-in-Green Blog about the band’s road to the present day.

How did the members of Third Coast Kings come together to form the band?
We formed in summer 2007.  I posted some ads seeking musicians and after a short period I had the core of the band formed.  The rest of the members fell into place after calling a few musician friends and by word of mouth.  It all seemed to come together pretty quickly.

Which artists have been the strongest influences in shaping your music?
There are many of course, however, we tend to favor funk and soul that is on the heavier, grittier side.  When the band was formed, we went on a pretty strict diet and I credit compilations such as Keb Darge’s ‘Legendary Deep Funk’ series and Luv n’ Haight’s ‘Searching for Soul’ compilation. I must stress that credit is due in so many other places, but again, there are simply too many positive influences to name.

How would you describe the music scene in Michigan?
I would say the Michigan music scene is pretty typical at the moment.  Our economy isn’t doing so great, so less people are out at the music clubs spending money.  But, like anything else, I’m sure that better times will come.  We’ve played most major cities in Michigan and are always well received.  Michigan is known for Motown – we’ve got to keep that alive.  Many great musicians have come from here and will always continue to.

Can you tell us a little about what went into the making of the album?
The original tracks that went into the album were written and recorded in a manner that would attempt to recreate the way it was done in the 60s and 70s.  We knew right away that we wanted to find a place that could record on 2” reel to reel tape.  After finding the proper studio, we implemented a few simple rules:  use the least amount of effects, processing and mics possible. This is all in the name of capturing the essence of funk and soul in its heyday.  As for the tracks, they just had to pass the test of sounding like songs that could have come from that generation.  This is a lot tougher to do than one might think!  It is something we are still refining.

How would you say the creative process in writing, producing and recording new music usually work for you? 
It always starts with doing your homework.  In my opinion, the best way to write and produce music is to learn from the masters.  You have to get into the mindset of the people who wrote this music before you.  Then you can attempt to recreate it.  Like I’ve said, it’s not always easy.  The band has gotten very good at recognizing when a song, or part, just won’t do.  When we feel that our composition fits in perfectly with something from the past, we proceed.  There is great pleasure in paying homage to the music that we love – it should be this way for anyone who writes.

Why was 'Spicy Brown' chosen as the first single?
It seemed that this track would work well on video and as a good way to visually introduce ourselves to the world.  We’ve had a few singles released on Record Kicks compilations, but never a video.  It just seemed like the best track to do, so we went with our gut instinct.

How was the video to put together?
The video took a while to reach fruition, mostly because we couldn’t decide on a concept.  All we knew was that we wanted it to look vintage and funky.  So we met with a local videographer and came up with a few ideas.  Once a location was locked down, we showed up and let the director work his magic.  Now we know to always trust the videographer!  All in all, it only took about two hours of setup and filming.

How would you say your sound holds up against other funk acts?
We definitely hold our own.  The band is well rehearsed and operates under a pretty strict discipline of deep, heavy funk.  In our experience, we have not always had the pleasure of playing with funk/soul bands that are aiming to achieve the same things we are.  We do occasionally run into some great bands that share our love for this type of music and it is very refreshing to see.  At the end of the day, these are the bands that we share a mutual respect for and there is a definite sense of camaraderie.

How does the band's music transfer to the stage show?
Our stage show is something we are very proud of.  A new set list is written for each performance, so they are always different.  One thing that never changes is our ability to segue each track into the next, like a DJ changing records without stopping the beat.  Our sets are typically 1-2 hours and during that time, the rhythm section never stops playing.  We also showcase an extensive library of covers from artist like The Dayton Sidewinders, African Music Machine, The Soul Tornadoes and Deep Heat – just to name a few.

Who would be a dream artist to perform with or have appear on your album?
First person that comes to mind – Lee Fields!  The man is still doing it right, and we love it!

Chris Dave and The Drumhedz Mixtape

If you’re a soul music fan, whether you know it or not, chances are you have a fantastic piece of music that has the incredible talent of Chris Dave thrashing away on drums.  His ever-growing list of contributions include Maxwell’s ‘BLACKsummer’snight’, Jose James’s ‘No Beginning No End’, Adele’s gargantuan-selling release ‘21’, albums from Mint Condition, Toni Braxton, Lionel Richie and Kenny Garrett.

It doesn’t even stop there as he’s also notched up touring credits with Maxwell and D’Angelo on the latter’s first tour in twelve years, and being named as a key member of the act that had a seminal breakthrough year in 2012 with the release of their exquisite  album ‘Black Radio’, The Robert Glasper Experiment… it’s probably best I swiftly move on from talking about this album as I could infinitely sing its praises, but in my review of that release, I did cite a certain Chris ‘Daddy’ Dave’s performances throughout as being the show-stealer, which brings us perfectly back round to the point of this post.

Further establishing himself as an incredible force in this century’s soul and jazz – not just as a session musician but as a producer as well – Chris Dave unveils 2013’s first genuine gift in the form of his brand new mixtape ‘Chris Dave and The Drumhedz’.  Featuring musicians including Pino Palladino (who also takes on some production duties here too), Casey Benjamin, Saunders Sermons [please keep your eyes peeled on this site for lots more from Saunders], Robert Glasper and James Poyser, along with vocalists, Sy Smith, Stokley Williams and Aaron Camper, Chris Dave swathes through an incredible portfolio of styles and sounds that genuinely makes you yearn for a full-length album release.

Definitely not one to be missed so this completely free download can be accessed directly via Chris’ website here:

http://chris-dave.com/

Record Kicks: Here's to another 10!

With the incredible statistic of 109 releases from 51 international artists, I'm very happy to wish Record Kicks a very happy 10th anniversary!

Over the past couple of years, I've been as big a flag-waver for the label as anyone and have been fortunate enough to add to my own collection, music from Nick Pride & The Pimptones, The Liberators, Dojo Cuts and The Baker Brothers to name just a few.  Over the past ten years, the Italian-based independent record label has been one of the biggest advocates of contemporary funk music, practically scouring incredible bands from as many corners of the world as it can find them. 

If you're unfamiliar with Record Kicks then we really need to do something about that... Leading the celebrations are two fantastic acts that genuinely delivered brilliance in 2012.  First off is The Third Coast Kings, whose interview we carried out with them will be on this site within a couple of days.  Their new single, potentially the show-stealer from their self-titled debut album, 'Give Me Your Love', can be seen here:

  ... and the act that we very recently featured in an exclusive interview on this site late last year, Hannah Williams & The Tastemakers, who are now prepping their brand new single, a cover version of Barbara Lynn's 'I'm A Good Woman':

It's been an incredible ten years for the label and their uncanny ability to unearth talent in the way they do means - as fans - it's been an incredible ten years for us too.  The Blue-in-Green Sessions would like to toast Record Kicks to another even-more-successful ten!

Tweet Tuesdays

Starting from this Sunday’s show, we’ll finally get round to playing some of the pleasant array of songs that spawned from the online bliss of ‘Tweet Tuesdays’ courtesy of an artist I’ve been carrying a torch for for some time now!  (Granted these songs have actually been online for a good few months now but it’s never too late to be put on to something new.)

Having come up from DeVante’s 90s collective, Da Bassment and Swing Mob, along with Timbaland, Missy Elliot, Ginuwine and Playa - Tweet - who was first introduced to us via her debut Timbaland-produced single, ‘Oops (Oh My)’ (the song she would describe as being about ‘self love’ although consistently denying it was about the physical act of ‘self love’ even though it oh-so-obviously was), has been in the depths of label limbo over the past five or six years.  ‘Southern Hummingbird’ was released in 2002 with the aforementioned single kicking things off, and actually being a bit misleading in terms of the music you can expect from her album.  ‘Oops’ and follow-up single, ‘Boogie Tonight’, gave the strong indication that ‘Southern Hummingbird’ was a commercial and club-friendly record, but it was actually a mature and grown-up rnb release, and it’s a shame that people may have missed out on songs like ‘My Place’, ‘Complain’ and ‘Beautiful’, which were intimate and warmly affectionate, sweet rnb-soul songs.

Her sophomore effort, ‘It’s Me Again’ came to us in 2005 and the music continued in much the same vein as its predecessor, with far less club-friendly songs, in favour of further brilliance in the form of ‘Iceberg’, ‘I’m Done’ and the sounds-like-it-wouldn’t-work-in-a-million-years sampling of the theme song to US sitcom , ‘Taxi’, which is looooooovvveeellly.

What happened after that is a little beyond me though.  I do believe ‘It’s Me Again’ may have under-performed sales wise, and there have been a number of stop-starts in terms of new material being released – singles have surfaced but perhaps haven’t picked up in the way they were hoped to.
There is some excellent news though…  2012 sees Tweet taking the proverbial bull by the proverbial horns and releasing music by herself for free.  Songs are available to download from the link below so grab them while you can…!  Fingers crossed for a full-length album on the way soon as well!!

http://soundcloud.com/dubose-music-group

About that 'Cab Ride' I was talking about earlier too...

HMV goes into administration!

Very sad news. 

I suppose it’s fairly indicative of how music is continually being sought out now – online is no longer looking to be the future, it’s looking to be the only option.  It’s fairly inevitable that in ten, fifteen years’ time, it will be very difficult to be able to walk into a store and purchase an actual CD.  Maybe charity shops will become the new record collector’s dream?

First, Our Price (remember them?), Virgin, Zavvi (are they still going actually?), and now potentially HMV.  It’s been fascinating seeing how HMV have had to move with the times up to this point and to note their transition from being Goliath, in comparison with the independent music retailers, and then morphing into their role as David against the online stores like Amazon and iTunes.  I’ve spent many, many hours in HMV Bond Street – that was my store!  I used to walk around in lunch breaks, after work, and even before work, flicking through their, at one time, extensive CD singles, and albums, etc, and this is back when that store used to house music on all of its three floors.  Sadly too, that store doesn’t exist anymore but last time I was there, all of the music had been moved to the top floor with the ground and basement floors housing the DVDs, games, iPod equipment, etc. 

I imagine this story would be more touching if I was writing about a tiny independent music store being eaten up by the big leagues.  In truth, for CDs, over the years I’ve definitely turned to Amazon as it’s certainly far cheaper to buy online, and I’m still in the dwindling minority of people who still actually purchase hardcopy!  Incredible isn’t it?!

I suppose that’s what I love about The Blue-in-Green blog…  Here, I’m potentially not in the dwindling minority at all.  Here’s a place for music fans, connoisseurs and enthusiasts to share their passion, and buying CDs and records doesn’t make you a bizarre stone-age weirdo.  (Sorry, but you’d be surprised at the amount of people that are shocked that I actually still BUY music.)

Anyway, at the time of writing, this isn’t specifically the end for HMV yet so fingers crossed…! 

[re:jazz]: [re:invented] and [re:juvenated] [Interview]

Written by Imran Mirza

 With each year that passes, [re:jazz] continue to solidify their status as masters within the nu-jazz, electronic and acoustic scene.  The [re:jazz] legacy extends far beyond the albeit incredible statistic of five albums over ten years – it also includes remixes and over 80 contributions to compilations worldwide, as well as a refined live performance that has seen them grace stages across the world including their Japan’s Blue Note Tokyo.

Far from being a group to rest on its laurels or past successes, their brand new album for 2012, ‘Kaleidoscope’, represents something of a reinvention for the group – and certainly one that pays off in bucket loads as ‘Kaleidoscope’ can only ever be seen as an album that represents some of the group’s best work.

Acclaimed Jazzanova producer, Axel Reinemer, helps the band in their subtle shift towards their own compositions while still suavely occupying that no man’s land between electronic and acoustic music that fans have come to expect from [re:jazz].  The rebirth that is spearheaded by this release extends further with the introduction of their new vocalist, Mediha Rustempasic, who follows on from the departure of Inga, and simply excels on her three vocal contributions on this album.  As much of a revelation as she is though, it’s certainly not implied as any disrespect when I say that ‘Kaleidoscope’ further benefits from the presence of burgeoning soul legend, N’Dea Davenport who appears on the album’s opening number, ‘Don’t Push Your Luck’, Natalie Schaffer from Germany’s electro-jazz outfit, Nekta, who appears on ‘It’s All Good’, and Andrew Herbertson (Joash/London) who guests on the closing ‘Out of Phase’.

‘Kaleidoscope’ couldn’t be more apt a title for this album as the music, sounds and styles mesh to each other perfectly creating a timeless, bold and magical release for [re:jazz].  There are risks and gambles galore on this release, [re:jazz] haven’t played it safe but when your name carries as much weight as theirs, and when you’re just that good, as fans, playing it safe isn’t what we’d want from them.

Matthias Vogt from [re:jazz] takes the time out to talk about the group’s new album, singer and direction.

‘Kaleidoscope’ represents ten years in the industry and it’s an incredible body of work built up in that time – you must be overjoyed to already have such a legacy of music?
Absolutely! If anybody would have told me that ten years ago it would have been unbelievable. It is a great opportunity and exactly what I love! And focusing on our own compositions on studio album number five is an extra pleasure.

How does ‘Kaleidoscope’ differ from past [re:jazz] album releases?
Besides the fact that we put more of our own originals on it, mainly two new aspects: the previous four albums where all-acoustic, now we bring in new electronic sounds and influences. For example, Oliver plays his clarinet via Ableton and many special fx, he also does that live on stage, sounds wicked. Plus, it is the first time an external producer worked with us on an album – we found Axel Reinemer (Jazzanova), who was the very best person for this collaboration. His vision, the work with vintage gear, old microphones, tube speakers, helped us to underline our band sound in a special way!

Can you talk about what went into making the album?
A significant fact of the album work was the co-writing with our guest musicians. That was all new for us. We wrote all the stuff, brought it to the studio and showed the music to our guests. This time we thought it would help our compositions to work with the guests on them, to make this material stronger. That meant we had to do a lot of communication before or during the rehearsals. The result was that we did rehearse a lot more than on the previous works. I think that is one of the main reasons that the whole band identifies themselves strongly with ‘Kaleidoscope’.

How would you say the creative process in writing, producing and recording new music usually works for you?
There is no blueprint for it at all, that may be the most important thing. A new album is a new challenge, and you cannot handle it exactly like the one before. So the best thing is not to try making it the same way. What helped us a lot this time were all the major differences, for example, a new recording studio. For the first time we worked with Gyso Hilger (Nekta) and our live mixer Jan Weimann who recorded us in Darmstadt. Axel Reinemer was there as well, with all his gear. Plus I recorded the grand piano in Berlin, via overdubs. Same with writing – no blueprint. So if you start with a white sheet of paper and see all your ideas grow, that is incomparable!

This album also marks the arrival of your brand new vocalist, Mediha Rustempasic – how did you come to work together?
Inga, our former singer, decided to leave the band right before the start of the new album. That was a shock. We didn't know what to do and brainstormed and looked for new ideas. Mediha was kind of too close to the band to see her – she is our guitarist's girlfriend! But she is such a great and talented singer, big fan of our band, knew all the songs... We found out that she is absolutely the right voice for this job, more than that: ‘Kaleidoscope’ wins a lot with her bluesy and soulful timbre. Good to have her in the band now!

Can you talk about some of the other vocalists you worked with for this album?
Three other vocalists are featured: The big name of course is N'Dea Davenport. I was such a big Brand New Heavies fan and listened to the first albums again before writing the songs for ‘Kaleidoscope’. I mentioned that talking to Jan Hagenkötter, head of Infracom, and he said, wait a moment, I might have an idea for contacting N'Dea. Surprisingly it worked out, and writing a song with her was phenomenal! Nathalie Schäfer, that was so logical, as we worked with her Nekta partner, Gyso, in the studio anyway. And Nekta is one of Infracom's main projects besides [re:jazz]. On ‘It's All Good’, we combine Nekta's and our sound, plus a lovely trumpet solo from Studnitzky! Last not least we got Andy Herbertson – I did a remix for a song from the project Joash for Munich based Compost records (‘The Simple Things’ [Matthias Vogt remix]). I immediately fell in love with the singer's voice, so natural. I had to ask Joash about Andy, and I am really happy we were able to work with him. Young guy from London – meanwhile I am working with him on a Matthias Vogt release which will be released on Lo:Rise/Defected next year!

Who would you love to have grace a stage, or appear on an album with [re:jazz]?
Luckily some of these dreams came true on the past albums, such a big fan of our guest artists, for example Erik Truffaz, Viktoria Tolstoy, Alice Russell, Linda Carriere, Nathan Haines, Nils Petter Molvaer... I got more on my secret list, but we will tell you when it does work out... :)

If you were introducing your music to a prospective new fan, which song from your catalogue would you recommend they listen to that best sums up the group?
I would probably suggest a song on which we tried to give a new perspective, but still being 100% typically [re:jazz]. So if I had only one try and wouldn't know the person to play it to I would chose our version of ‘Inner City Life’ featuring Jhelisa Anderson, from our second album ‘Point Of View’.

What’s been a notable career highlight for [re:jazz]?
Touring Japan and playing Blue Note Tokyo! If you fly to the other side of the globe and still people show you love for what you are doing, in a club where all the jazz super stars are playing, that was a dream come true for all of us!

'Kaleidoscope' by [re:jazz] [Album review]

I can’t think of a time where I’ve felt so compelled as to start an album review with a grovelling apology, but in this case, it feels like the only way I should start it...  It’s purely down to bad timing on my part that the new album by [re:jazz] hasn’t been included amongst this blog’s top 5 albums of 2012, and that none of its songs made it on to our ‘best of’ playlists.

Let me tell you friends, it would’ve ranked highly.  Very highly, as it’s a pretty fantastic record and one I’m thrilled to have my hands on regardless of the year it was eventually discovered.

‘Kaleidoscope’ marks a new and vibrant musical direction for the band, guided expertly by Jazzanova’s Axel Reinemer and marking the inclusion of the group’s brand new vocalist, Mediha Rustempasic, who genuinely excels on her contributions including the exquisite ‘At First Glance’.  Mediha features with a handful of additional vocalists including Natalie Schaffer and Andrew Herbertson along with the woman whose Midas touch has blessed compositions by DJ Spinna, Shuya Okino, Guru, The Brand New Heavies (obviously!) – N’Dea Davenport – surely one of the most bankable artists you could choose to feature on your album!

I could actually go on about this for some time but I figure I should just get right down to how I'm going to make amends here, how can I make it up to you...? how can I make it up to them...? how can I make it up to myself?

Well, firstly, here's a live performance from the group as they perform 'Don't Push Your Luck', with Ms Mediha filling in for N'Dea, and secondly, it was only fair that we catch up with the group to say hi...

'Out of Oak' by Southpaw [EP]

I can't believe it's been nearly a year ago now (26th February 2012) since I debuted 'Illio' to our airwaves - I remember saying it live on that show then, and on subsequent shows, that there would come a day that Starpoint DJs, and hopefully DJs and fans all around the world, would be playing music from this incredible new band, and I'm thrilled to be able to announce the next step in that becoming a reality...

As much as I relished being one of few who had access to Southpaw's 'Out of Oak' EP, I'm even more thrilled to be able to announce it's now awaiting the pleasure of your very own ears as it's finally available for you to get your own hands on at Bandcamp.  The link to purchase it can be found here:

http://sthpw.bandcamp.com/

...and here's the YouTube link to the song that got me hooked, and the song that also boasted pride-of-place amongst The Blue-in-Green Sessions' 'Best of 2012' playlist, 'Illio'.

Gabriele Poso: Sunshine on a Rainy day!

Written by Imran Mirza

Catching a lot of people off guard – including yours truly – Sardinia's very own, Gabriele Poso may very well have delivered the definitive soundtrack to 2012’s summer with his album release, 'Roots of Soul'.  And there was certainly a lot to choose from amongst the soul and jazz music releases, but while Incognito and Gregory Porter’s sophomore effort woooow’ed us, and we ooooooh’ed at releases from Joey Negro & The Sunburst Band along with Dojo Cuts, Poso's effortless blend of jazz, latin and bossa flavours mixed with a natural soul aesthetic generated beautiful textures and layers of a fresh-faced sound always welcome when basking in the rays of a summer sunshine.

Having culminated and defined his sound through his love of percussion, Poso's exceptional talents as an all-round multi-instrumentalist, writer, composer, producer, etc, have been honed over years of live performances and strong affiliations, with standout names, including Osunlade and the Yoruba Soul collective – whose strong and lengthy ties resulted in the production of Poso's first album released in 2008, 'From The Genuine World', and having performed with fellow Italian jazz and bossa nova maestro, Nicola Conte, amongst many others.  Also, able to boast having racked up countless performances across the world, including London, Paris, Istanbul, Belgium, Canada - it's these natural skills and eclectic energy that are masterfully captured on to this album.

Valuable vocal assistance comes from noteworthy jazz vocalist, Nailah Porter, who appears on two of the album's tracks, 'Into My Heart' and 'A Night With You'; Tanya Michelle, who secures the coveted spot on the album's lead-off single release, 'Sunshine', and the aforementioned Osunlade who lends an excellent contribution to one of the album's three cover versions, Dawn Penn's 'You Don't Love Me'.  Album highlights also come in the form of ‘Dona Flor’, ‘With Me Come Fly’ and ‘Tin Tin Deo’.

I was proud to catch up with Gabriele Poso about his incredible new album release, his music, his influences… and see for yourself why ‘mio figlio’ is the most moving and poignant answer to an interview question we’ve ever been proud to display on this site.

You must be thrilled with the high anticipation and coverage that the new album is gathering?
Absolutely, I'm very happy to see how ‘Roots of Soul’ is doing, and the feedback we have received, and continue to receive, has been numerous and all very positive. It is a great satisfaction considering the whole process has being very tiring and difficult, and it’s been almost four years in the making.

How would you describe the differences between ‘Roots of Soul’ and your first album release?
I believe that somehow every album has a link with its predecessor, even if it’s veiled as if it were a continuation of the same path, or rather as if it was a conversation between good friends. Sometimes you forget to talk about what initially drove you to meet, so you have to see them again, hoping to remember everything you meant to tell them until the next meeting and chat. In ‘Roots of Soul’, I tried to include most of the things that I had forgotten in ‘From The Genuine World’.

Can you tell us a little about what went into the making of this album?
In ‘Roots of Soul’, I tried to translate the energy that is released during a live [performance] with a band and in front of an audience and what happens in that unique, inimitable instant, that cannot be repeated again. I wanted to preserve this uniqueness and bring it back to the recording with much more simplicity.  In fact, the heart of each song was recorded live, trying to maintain this magic.

How did the vocal collaborations on the album come together?
The collaborations on the album are born in a very natural way.  I think that any collaboration comes from a deep personal bond, not just a professional one. Some are special encounters that I was lucky enough to find on my way, some are strong links I’ve been keeping for more than 13 years, as in the case of Osunlade.  Others are newborn, but have a sensational force, as in the case of Nailah Porter. They all have left a deep mark in my life and in my music.

Why did you decide on the album the title ‘Roots of Soul’?
The key to the album is contained in the title ‘Roots of Soul’.  Each person has his own spirit, roots and keys... I only offer the keyhole.

Can you tell us a little about what went into the making of the ‘Sunshine’ video?
Life is full of fortuitous moments and the video to ‘Sunshine’ is one of these. We met with, director, Tomaso Pessina in southern Italy, Salento, to be precise, which is my native land, and he was on vacation accompanied by a dear friend we have in common. We were listening to the song and he was immediately taken and wanted to turn it into a video clip. In a matter of days we had to find the locations and equipment to shoot it, which was quite difficult since it was August and the region was swarmed by vacationers.

One of the most talked-about aspects of this album is the fusion of different styles – was that intentional when you started planning the album or is it something that happened organically?
My music tries to express what it is that moves me and inspires me. So, I guess that what makes me vibrate is a completely natural process, in which I search for the right words using different languages.

Who are some of your musical influences and inspirations?
It's daily life, every day gives me a new chance to translate in notes what happens to me every single day. The album is dedicated to that.

What are some of your earliest memories of music?
A pair of headphones, a record player and a Stevie Wonder record on vinyl.

Who would be a dream vocalist or musician to have performed or recorded with?
‘Mio figlio’ ...my son.