Hip-Hop

Recently championed by Gilles Peterson on his BBC6 Music radio show, "Dilla" by Abstract Orchestra has been generating a buzz since it's inception in 2016 and subsequent u.k. tour, during which the album was presented to the public in its live form.Led by Saxophonist Rob Mitchell, Abstract Orchestra seeks to reflect the diversity of music sampled by Hip-Hop producers by presenting music that has the complexity of jazz, framed within the simpler structures of Hip-Hop. Complex harmonies are framed within simple loops and complex bar structures and time signatures can pass by unnoticed. "I selected the tracks on the album with very much the live performance in mind" says band-leader and arranger Rob Mitchell "So the album is a reflection of the tour and the music we performed".Inspired by the legendary live performances of The Roots with Jay-Z and the 40 piece orchestral arrangements by Miguel-Atwood Ferguson of the work of J Dilla, classic arranging techniques underpin modern loop-based structures.The band itself is based on the classic jazz big band instrumentation of saxes, trumpets and trombones and features the cream of the north of England's jazz scene who collectively have played with Jamiroquai, Corinne Bailey Rae, Mark Ronson, Martha Reeves, John Legend & the Roots, Roots Manuva and Amy Winehouse."Dilla" by Abstract Orchestra is a tribute to the work of the highly acclaimed and influential producer. Opener"Welcome to Detroit/The Diary"takes the the vocal sample from Isaac Hayes's "Man's Temptation" and places it against lush brass and driving beats while"Workinonit"Transplants the original 10cc guitar samples from the Dilla original onto biting trumpets and aggressive saxes, underpinned as always by Joost Hendrickx's on point drumming. On"Stop"vocalist Anna Uhuru handles the Dionne Warwick vocal with assurance while the band lay down an arrangement that is reminiscent of the work of David Axelrod and Don Sebeskey, both big sources of inspiration for Abstract Orchestra.The middle of the album revolves around 2 Dilla medleys featuring versions and sections of"Airworks", "ULove", "Last Donut"and"Welcome To The Show"."Raw Shit"sees Farfisa organ underpinning the insistent brass figures with the bass taking on an almost bassoon-like quality while "Official/Fall In Love"sees Anna & Akin provide a stunning vocal performance, trading lines over the delicate horn arrangement. "Fantastic"features theRhodes intro of the original which is then taken up by the flutes and baritone sax. Inspired by the work of 20th century classical composers like Barber and Copeland the 2nd half of the arrangement takes on an almost orchestral feel with shades of Gil Evans."Love","So Far To Go","A.N.G.E.L.", and"Sun In My Face"provide interesting takes on these well known Dilla originals while album closer"Two Can Win"(recently championed by Gilles Peterson on his BBC6 Music show) acts as a showcase for the variety of Anna Uhuru's vocals, blending the style of the original Sylvers track with Minnie Ripperton style harmonies, 70's funk and Lalo Schiffrin/JJ Johnson film score vibes. Closing track "Two can win" was played twice in two consecutive weeks by Gilles Peterson on his BBC6 Music show, where he declared it to be "A Winner".

The sonic partnership of K15 and Emeson originated in the days of MySpace. A future of combining their skills was inevitable, and now in 2017, it's time to unleash their debut studio album into the ether.The solo-projects of Tottenham-raised Kieron Ifill (aka K15) date back a decade, but were truly kick-started on labels such as Kyle Hall's Wild Oats and WotNot Music, with a number of genre-crossing releases dropping ever since, including the WU15 project (along with Yussef Kamaal's Henry Wu, on Eglo Records). Additionally to his production work, he has established himself internationally as a DJ, from the Jazz Cafe to the CoOp parties.Partner in Profusion, Emeson, has many skills to his bow - singing, songwriting, producing, promoting, DJing (under the alias Ed Nice) and acting. As a musician, his varied skill-set has seen him work with Chico Hamilton, Carla Duke, Karmasound, Uzo Madu and Chris Jerome. A frontman for soul-jazz groups LifeSize, The One and Saturn's Children, he has featured on releases for BBE and Tokyo Dawn, and appeared live on stage at the likes of Ronnie Scott's.The debut single was supported by tastemaker blogs Wonderland, XLR8R and Stamp The Wax, has been bumped by selectors such as Lefto and Jazzie B, and played on NTS, Worldwide FM, Mi-Soul, LeMellotron, Balamii Radio, Itch FM, Invader FM, Soho Radio and various stations across Europe and the US.This album is full to the brim with summery sun-soaked synths, drifting across the warmest of basslines and heavyweight beats. Emeson's rich vocals gracefully ride atop of K15's delectably bruk twist on neo-soul sonics and electronics; this is some seriously classy contemporary London soul music, that manages to incorporate flashes of various dance music techniques, sound-system etiquette and jazz-tinged rhythms. As future-thinking as it is subtly retrospective, it doesn't lend itself to one genre, it intentionally embodies the best of many. An array of everything that is great about British black music in 2017. The message the album conveys itself couldn't have come at a more poignant time. Where do we begin?Profusion - an abundance of something rich indeed.