Jameszoo (Mitchel van Dinther) returns to Brainfeeder with a new album – “Blind” – embarking on further adventures on the fringes of jazz and electronica. Imbued with the same spirit of adventure and experimental outlook as his previous work on the label, the recordings were shaped by van Dinther’s studio sessions at Willem Twee Studios – the specialist analogue studio in Den Bosch (Netherlands) with an unrivalled collection of vintage synthesizers – amongst other locations.

“In music and other arts there is a heavy emphasis on the artist,” says Mitchel. “Which composer, which soloist, which performer and the shifting emphasis between them all colours what we hear. Is it possible to create something that bypasses this? A project that forces active objective listening?”

These were the questions that Mitchel was pondering as he embarked on making “Blind”. Was he successful in his endeavour? “I didn’t even come close to be completely honest,” he laughs. “But all these (sometimes silly) attempts became the backbone for this new album.”

Mitchel started by trying to bypass himself as the protagonist, beginning by remotely recording musicians and collaborators reshaping his initial ideas and concepts, step by step morphing the music as if repainting a portrait again and again. “I tried to stop force-feeding my own preconceived notions of what music should sound like. Instead I would politely impose new ideas to the compositions, crossing fingers it wouldn't reject these ideas like a failed organ transplant. Then something special started to happen, where the music seemed to grow almost self aware. I really enjoyed this process of letting loose and actively listening!”

Fascinated by the idea of a non-existent soloist, Mitchel recorded all sorts of motorised instruments to attempt to embody this idea. For example, the Disklavier (motorised piano) which allowed for precision and the execution of passages unplayable by the human hand. “It really helped me aesthetically detach from the human aspect,” he says. “The Disklavier started to embody the music’s characteristics.”

“Blind” exists as an album and a short film directed by Sven Bresser and Mitchel van Dinther himself. The film stemmed from conversations that Mitchel had with the fantastic performer Saïd Gharbi who is blind and who was kind enough to share his experiences on translating his senses to something he can only partly experience himself. “We talked about his process of exploring and engaging with his other senses after losing his sight,” explains Mitchel. “Through these conversations we decided on making a short movie together to accompany the album, portraying Saïd’s and my own experience of this music and our senses.”

Finally, in an ultimate attempt to transform into music itself Mitchel asked the cult Chilean-French filmmaker and artist Alejandro Jodorowsky the question: ‘how do I shape-shift?’, with Alejandro answering the question via a recorded tarot reading. “He had no more than a few minor details about me and was guided by his cards to formulate his response, which was a dazzling 14 minute long answer where I felt like he could see me and my world without me physically being anywhere near him,” says Mitchel smiling.

Supported by a cast of exceptionally talented friends on “Blind” who share van Dinther’s passion for improvisation and invention, Mitchel once agains links with his long term writing partner and keyboard whizz Niels Broos, Swedish bassist Petter Eldh and drummers Richard Spaven and Julian Sartorius, all of whom contributed to van Dinther’s debut album “Fool” (2016). Violinist Diamanda La Berge Dramm, pianist/organist Kit Downes (ECM), visionary trumpeter Peter Evans, trailblazing British saxophonist Evan Parker (a pivotal figure in the European free jazz movement), drummer Christian Lillinger, Brainfeeder label mate Oliver Johnson (Dorian Concept), saxophonist John Dikeman and the acclaimed sound explorer Matthew Bourne also contribute.

Jameszoo released his debut album “Fool” in 2016. A curious, at times downright awkward, but thoroughly enjoyable blend of jazz and off kilter electronics, the record featured cameos from two outright legends: Brazilian composer Arthur Verocai and pianist Steve Kuhn; in addition to virtuoso bassist Thundercat. van Dinther was rewarded for his bold, adventurous attitude in the studio by Gilles Peterson who bestowed upon him the “John Peel Play More Jazz” Award at the Worldwide Awards 2017.

In 2017 Jameszoo opened Amsterdam Dance Event with a very special collaboration with Jules Buckley and the Grammy-Award winning Metropole Orkest at the iconic Melkweg concert hall. The magic and the chemistry in the room that evening was both exhilarating and heartwarming as Buckley – Chief Conductor of the Metropole Orkest since 2013 – led the 49-piece orchestra and the Jameszoo Quintet on a truly joyful journey, elevating compositions from van Dinther’s 2016 album “Fool” to transcendental realms. The recordings of this momentous collaboration were released via Brainfeeder on 17 May 2019.

“Blind” will be released on 11th March 2022 on black vinyl LP with braille emboss detail on the sleeve. A strictly limited edition tarot deck (with album download) is also exclusively available via Bandcamp/Brainfeeder. The artwork for the project is by the celebrated Dutch artist Philip Akkerman, a dear friend of van Dinther.

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Repress!
Flying Lotus puts out this 3disc set - showcasing the music from Los Angeles jazz giant, composer, and bandleader Kamasi Washington ! Check a vid of a live improv jam with Miles Mosley below!The Epic is a 172-minute, three-volume set that includes a 32-piece orchestra, a 20-person choir, and 17 songs overlaid with a compositional score written by Washington. Pulsing underneath is an otherworldly ten-piece band. The band includes some of the most highly regarded young musicians on the planet, including bassist Thundercat and his brother, drummer Ronald Bruner Jr., as well as bassist Miles Mosley, drummer Tony Austin, keyboard player Brandon Coleman, pianist Cameron Graves and trombonist Ryan Porter. They make their living playing as sidemen for pop, jazz and hip-hop acts ranging from Rihanna to Stanley Clarke to Snoop Dogg.

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Flying Lotus: "I think it's safe to say Jeremiah Jae is one of my favorite artists of his generation. For years now I've been a witness to the incredible progression of his craft. This album has a complex dedication and honesty that I search for in myself with my own art. Underrated and understated, Jae is ready to show these muhfuckers what's really good. Believe in Jeremiah Jae"

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With his sophomore album Ghost People appearing on 2011?s end of the year charts for the likes of Mixmag (#6), Clash Magazine (#9), DJ Magazine (#9), Data Transmission (Album of the Year), Martyn returns to Brainfeeder to release a follow-up 12? this March. The 12? leads with "Hello Darkness", previously unreleased and exclusive to the release, Martyn shuffles through a rhythmic bassline and feeling of, indeed, darkness from the very first beat. In typical Martyn fashion, the track skips its way through genre conventions, landing in a flux between 2-step, driving techno and old rave (the latter specifically heard in his ethereal and scaling upper melodies). "Hello Darkness" could lend itself to the rawest, grittiest warehouse, yet simultaneously breeds a subtle feeling of elation and release, and keeps the listener guessing with a variety of quirky sound collages. It also features a remix of "Bauplan", Night Slugs bosses L-Vis 1990 and Bok Bok bringing the most sinister corners of London into their remix, with a heavy grime lean and a pervading feeling of tension. Erratic samples (sounds of a tweeting bird one moment, the cocking of a gun the next) appear in-between a snap beat, metallic stabs and an apocalyptic build-up of percussion and synths. Pulsing in and out of a highly volatile atmosphere, almost as if the track is alive and breathing, this "Bauplan" almost feels like an unrelated beast until Martyn?s melody lines start to unfold halfway through the track. To finish there is an exclusive remix of "We Are You In The Future", a favourite from the Ghost People LP amongst critics and DJs across the board. Techno?s notorious man in the red mask - Redshape - steps up to create a deep and dark Detroit interpretation of Martyn?s freewheeling, sci-fi-enhanced joyride. Laced with ominous vocal samples (?It may be an accidental side effect of the drug?), the future takes on a slightly more dystopian feel with Redshape?s melancholic strings, unpredictable percussion builds and a lingering, creeping reinterpretation of the track?s original melodies. A definitive nod to the epic work of Derrick May and Carl Craig, with a hint of Kenny Larkin?s intricate builds.

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Stuart Howard aka Lapalux has come up with something special for his first release with Cali's finest, Brainfeeder. Having made his name with his cassette-only "Many Faces Out Of Focus" and acclaimed bootlegs and remixes he returns with a seven track EP of such poise and beauty, one listen is enough to know you're onto something special. Lapalux bathes your brain in lush textures, surprising and explosive atmospheres set in unencountered, unearthly spaces, all somehow perfectly set against catchy rolling choruses informed by pop and commercial R&B. On the "When You're Gone" EP he channels and refines his sound and shapes it into hazy, woozy emotion.

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