Anodyne
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
 
Madlib is Not Himself Today -- LA Weekly profile

"He’s not even someone else, but five different people: vibraphonist/psychiatrist Amhad Miller, guitarist Malik Flavors, bassist/physicist Monk Hughes, pianist Joe McDuffrey [sic] and drummer Otis Jackson Jr., together known as Yesterdays New Quintet (YNQ).

This latest bizarre brainchild was inspired by one of Madlib’s great loves, jazz, as the Quintet updates the funky fusion sound of the 1970s with a touch of hip-hop aesthetics. Unlike rap artists who merely sample jazz songs, the YNQ project has pushed Madlib to become a musician himself by learning how to play keyboards such as his original Rhodes electric piano and then using synths to add instrumentation as varied as kalimba (thumb piano), electric bass and guitar. Adding to the challenge was the fact that Madlib had to compose each track one element at a time. 'Sometimes I’d start with the drums, sometimes the bass lines, and just try to improvise,' he says, and then he’d return to the beginning and layer the next instrument, rewind and repeat until 'it sounded complete to me, and I was satisfied with it.'"


- posted by cjb @ 10:07 PM


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