Crate Soul Brothers newsletter #110: A deep groove that makes you fly high

Dear friends,

Just when you thought we were gone, we are back with another newsletter. Judging by our first two months you shall not be afraid of Crate Soul news blocking your mailbox in 2004. Instead of following the time as measured by expensive Swiss watches with posting our good news from Hungary, this year we'll take you by surprise each and every time. But the unpredictable, rare and delicate moments of hungarospam will keep on coming.

Thing are looking good indeed. Working hard last autumn and winter on promoting events seems to finally have caught the attention of a new generation of people. Boys and girls in their early twenties started coming to our nights and bugging out to slow funk and syncopated jazz beats. In the last few months we had excellent nights with fabulous dj guests such as Rainer Trüby, Quantic, Mad Mats and Nicola Conte and more and more hundreds of people going mad on the dancefloors. Thank you guys for all those brilliant music! There is more to come.

Things are also catching up on the production front: our latest Crate Soul Brothers tune (Flying Down to Rio) is already getting spins from respected djs like Tom Wieland, Nicola Conte, Rainer Trüby, Dom Servini, Toshio Matsuura, Painé and DJ Spider. The track hit the stores a few days ago on a 12" and a compilation by Tom Wieland entitled Panorama (Perfect Toy) before the white labels wear out (those who have the white label please keep in mind that the two tracks on the info sheet are changed). Another Crate Soul 12" (Swinging with Miss Goodnight) shall be out soon on the Italian Ohm label featuring a breakneck hip hop version by Modul (aka dj Mango, a Hungarian friend and turntablist of dZihan & Kamien live band) and a broken free jazz mix by Panoptikum. On top of all this, we have just finished a stomping remix for Forms of Plasticity (soon to be out on a Universal Jazz 12" with a dZihan & Kamien mix).

We are getting busy writing about music to different Hungarian magazines as well: Keyser started a monthly column about fresh 12"s in the Check music magazine while both brothers write about new albums and spread the vibes in Fontos! cultural magazine.

The Hungarian scene is definitely blowing up internationally this year: watch out for the new album of Marcel (aka Carmel) on Good Looking soon, expect a full-length debut by Erik Sumo (our Crate Soul bro of „I'm just a woman" fame) and the long awaited second album by Yonderboi later this year. We've also heard gossiping about an international release of Sena's 'First One' album produced by the cream of the Hungarian underground (among others: Marcel, Modul, Yonderboi, Superbeat, Zagar). Sena is a very talented female singer and MC inspired by soul, jazz and hip hop. The Hungarian version of the album was very well received all around our local scene, with most of the highlights already played in our radio show. But we'll keep you informed on these bits anyway.

Read Gary McFarland about reaching that cosmic groove during the making of the tune Simpatico for the album of the same title with Gabor Szabo:

"It was toward the close of a double session. We were all very tired and we were trying a number of different songs, but they weren't working out. Finally we got to this traditional pattern - as traditional to latin music as blues changes are to jazz. […] We took the tempo down, and we got a really groovy feeling. In fact, we got into the kind of trance that all latin players aim for. For that matter, all players try for that deep groove - from John Coltrane to Ravi Shankar. If you get it, you lock it in, and you feel as if you're flying along at 30,000 feet, cruising all the way."

from the liner notes of Gary McFarland and Gabor Szabo - Sympatico (Impulse!)

Keep on cruising high till whenever our next newsletters happen to hit your mailbox,

Keyser & Shuriken (Crate Soul Brothers)

Keyser & Shuriken chart 03/2004

1. Five Corners Quintet - The Devils Kicks (Ricky Tick)
2. 7 Samurai - Bluesanova (G.A.M.M.)
3. Oscar Sulley - Bukem Mashie - Quantic remix (Soundway)
4. Neptune Alpha Base Massive - Saturn Radio EP (Further Out)
5. DKD - Future Rage (Bitasweet/2000 Black)
6. Nik Weston presents Sakura Aural Bliss sampler (Kriztal Entertainment)
7. Blissom & Ashen - Mr. Tran Travels in Sound EP Part 1 (Spot)
8. Zimpala - Can't Fall Asleep - Gerd 4Lux remix (Zimpala)
9. Forms of Plasticity - Doombap - Crate Soul Brothers remix (cdr)
10. Nostalgia 77 - Songs for My Funeral (Tru Thoughts LP)
11. Blockhead - Music by Cavelight (Ninja Tune LP)
12. Fat Freddy's Drop - Live At The Matterhorn (Fat Freddy's Drop LP)
13. Dani Siciliano - Likes (!K7 LP)
14. Gerardo Frisina - Hi Note (Schema LP)
15. New Sector Movements - Turn It Up (Virgin LP)