Lp Launch on Quantic s new Album and film premier of B+ new documentary on the making of Quantic's LP...Music, Film, Photgraphy and a Q&A with both by Donal Dineen
| Date: | Thursday 4th Jun 2009 |
| Time: | 19.00 |
| Venue: | Southwilliam, Dublin 2 |
| Admission: | € RSVP - Free - Ltd capacity |
| Tickets: |
On 4th June, the internationally revered musician and DJ, Quantic, and cutting edge street photographer/film director, B+, will bring the sights and sounds of the Tropics to the South William Bar, Dublin 2 with a spectacular evening of music, film and photography in celebration of ‘Tradition In Transition’, the upcoming album by Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro.
An exclusive press screening of the B+ film Tradition In Transition – A Postcard From Cali will kick off proceedings, followed by a rare opportunity for members of the press and media to put their burning questions to Quantic and B+ themselves in a Q&A session. with Donal Dineen. The unique film - somewhere between a documentary, a travelogue and a music video - is steeped in spectacular imagery and sound tracked by music from ‘Tradition In Transition’, giving an indelible impression of the vibrant city of Cali, Colombia, the location in which Quantic now lives and records.
The doors will then open to the public and Quantic will take to the decks to kick the party into full swing with one of his highly sought-after DJ sets, mixing songs from the album with a handpicked and unpredictable selection of Cumbia, funk and hard-to-find tropical beats. Quantic is a travelling musician and a renowned crate-digger with a self-confessed addiction to unearthing rare and powerful records, so you can expect a dancefloor experience unlike any other when he is at the helm.
Throughout the evening there will be continual screenings of the film, and a hard-copy exhibition of B+ photographs taken while on location, for an evocative and potent glimpse into the rhythms of life in the city of Cali, Quantic’s adopted Colombian home and the well-spring of inspiration for ‘Tradition In Transition’.
On the crest of a burgeoning worldwide wave of interest in the lesser-tapped sources of music from the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa, Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro are leading the charge. The stunning album, ‘Tradition In Transition’, out in July, sees this international cast of acclaimed musical creators fusing those rediscovered psychedelic, experimental and rhythmically rich sounds of the past with deep funk and soul elements, giving life to an explosive sonic snapshot of the ever-evolving musical landscape of the Americas.
Band leader William Holland – the English producer, musician and record collector better known as Quantic – has sold in excess of 100,000 records in his various guises, including solo projects and with his acclaimed live funk band, The Quantic Soul Orchestra. His track ‘Mi Swing Es Tropical’ with Nickodemus featured in Apple’s worldwide iPod advert in 2007, bringing him further to the world’s attention, and in 2007 Holland moved to Cali, Colombia’s third largest city, to pursue his passion for both unearthing lost treasures from Colombia’s musical past and making new music with the golden array of talent available today. Upon realising the potency and sheer depth of quality present in these players, Holland assembled his Combo Bárbaro (literally translating as ‘group of barbarians or people from outside Europe’) to take up the baton from The Quantic Soul Orchestra in the realisation of the next phase of his musical vision.
The result is a multi-cultural patchwork – a record bathed but not exclusively rooted in Colombian musical culture, embracing the musical range of all the American continent – honouring and utilising its contributors’ individual backgrounds while conjuring up a unique brand of contemporary music that is a joy and a celebration to listen to, and a live experience that defies comparison.
The stellar array of musicians at the core of the Combo Bárbaro are: pianist Alfredo Linares, who wowed the sell-out crowds with his virtuoso performances on The Quantic Soul Orchestra’s 2008 tour; Freddy Colorado, the energetic, charismatic cornerstone of the Cali music circuit, on congas; Fernando Silva on baby bass; William Holland himself on electric guitar; and London-based drummer and long time Quantic collaborator Malcolm Catto, also well known for his own band The Heliocentrics, in fine form. ‘Tradition In Transition’ also benefits incalculably from the talents of veteran Brazilian writer, arranger and musical innovator Arthur Verocai, who scored and directed a 12 piece string section on several themes. Legendary Panamanian soul singer Kabir lends his rich vocal tones to two tracks; Indian-born singer Falu, now based in the USA, brings her beguiling mix of North Indian Classical and rock-influenced vocal styles; and Pacific folklore singer and award-winning songwriter Nidia Góngora contributes her beautiful song “Un Canto A Mi Tierra”.
B+
Brian Cross, aka B+, is an Irish born, Los Angeles based photographer & filmmaker who has become widely known and acclaimed for his album cover pictures of Mos Def, Rza, Q-Tip, Ozomatli, Jurrassic 5, J Dilla and Madlib, to name a few, and videos for artists including DJ Shadow. A many-times-published author and integral figure in the documentation of underground and Latin American music - both in print and on film - Brian has visited Cali on several occasions to document the work of the Combo Bárbaro; he was present for the first recording session and his shots feature throughout the CD and vinyl album artwork.
