| features |
A trio featuring Clem Waldmann on drums and dual bassists Sasha Frere-Jones and Wilbo Wright. For this writer, it was the gig of the year by a street, as they produced an incredibly muscular, sinuous mix of groove based, bass driven music, full of melody and power. Oh, and they also swung and rocked like mutha's! Quite simply, they were a revelation, mixing the hard beats of electronic dance music with a warmth and sense of humanity that's missing from so much of today's instrumental based music. So I asked group founder Sasha and (tree farmer and jazz musician, it says in his biog! Chap!) Wilbo, to try and define the almost undefinable Ui sound. "Low end for all" says Sasha, "rhythm as melody and vice versa, all sounds and instruments equal. Music without words but not background music. straight up music for physical thinkers and hopeful types" This pretty much sums up Ui's pretty unique approach to sound, you'd be hard pushed to find a tighter, more expressive group, as they lock into grooves and rhythm's that come across as effortless, yet with a clarity, power and inventiveness few "conventional" groups could wish to emulate. These boys really know their stuff, with Wilbo having played with Marc Ribot among others, of whom he says "playing with him helped to further sharpen my intuitive skills" Sasha mentions that Wilbo is the first person he's met to "play the tuba without shame." And that when Wilbo joined the group "it became a real 3 way democracy". Coupled with Clems awesomely tight but loose drum skills, they make for a potent force. On their use of two basses Wilbo helps out; "we both like to play shapes; I do mean geometric as well as musical ones. Sometimes it's bass/bass groove overlaps, sound events, sonic block constructs, counterpoint and or oblique "actions". It's all good!" Samples are also run alongside the basses, with Sasha adding backing sounds from mini-disc and sampler and keys, and Wilbo using keyboards, loops and triggering two Boomerang samplers; all at the same time. "I like to be clear" says Sasha, "I often hit hard, but it all depends. Sometimes I like it defined like dots, sometimes I saw away like an old fool" Collaboration also plays a big part in the Ui make up, having worked with many other artists, on re-mixing projects, and they've also had their own music re-shaped and re-formed. "all music is collaboration, unless you're Prince" says Sasha, "I just love playing and writing music with like minded people. Being in a band doesn't affect or limit that" Wilbo agrees, "it's about what being in a band is all about. I love playing other people's music and screwing around with it ..(as well as my own things). Basically, re-mixes are a secondary, fun thing to do; bands are the shit!" Anyone wishing to catch up on the Ui sound can do worse than check out their recent release on Southern Records, the Iron Apple, but there's a lot more releases out there too, and if you have the patience to search them out, you'll find it an extremely rewarding experience. Giles |