Directed by Simon Phillips and Bob Komar.

Music composed by David Beard

The last professional engagement of the legendary MIKE REID.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Making of Jack Says The Premiere Screening Deleted/Extended Scenes Eric Cantona Gag Reel
JACK SAYS – The film is now available for pre-order on several sites:

WH SMITHS
HMV

JACK SAID Graphic Novel – The graphic novel is currently on sale in many book retailers, and heavily available again online. The book has just been released in the USA in the hope of building some expectancy of a US DVD release for the film.

As always – all my very best wishes.

David Beard
Film Music Composer

“It’s been a few years since I’ve focused on being a “player” but my involvement with www.totonetwork.com has made me realize how much fun this kind of music can be. In the meantime I’ve been busy making movies like “Local Color”, “Senior Skip Day“, “Payback”, “Spykids” etc. I’m looking forward to doing more of this and I thank you for your support.”

Recorded just prior to 9-11 this collection of songs features some the most famous and talented musicians of this generation:

Greg Bissonette – Drums (currently performing with Ringo Starr)
Luis Conti – percussion (from Dancing with the Stars and James Taylor)
Paul Jackson Jr. – Guitars (from American Idol)
Jimmy Johnson – bass (from James Taylor)
Abraham Laboriel – (the list is too long)
Eric Marienthal – sax (Chick Corea, David Benoit)

Recorded and mixed by Tom Vicari

All songs composed and produced by Chris Boardman

Chris Boardman on myspace

Chris Boardman’s blog

Contact:

Cheryl Hughey Promotions

314-660-1755

cherylhughey@charter.net

Vibes Alive Releases After Hours

Los Angeles, CA

Vibist Dirk Richter’s story is about discovery and passion. Before Dirk was even old enough to go to school, he was hanging out at the local music store. At the tender age of four, Dirk was intensely studying music on a daily basis. By the time he was five, Dirk was gigging as a sideman with other youngsters in a band called the Tax Exemptions.

Influenced by Jean Luc Ponty, Jeff Lorber, George Duke and Lionel Hampton (because of swing music), Dirk became a serious mallet player by the age of eight. After high school, he studied at Pasadena City College w/Gary Foster (who had a Monday night big band), thoroughly immersing himself in the local Pasadena jazz scene.

It was in Pasadena that Dirk would meet his future partner in songwriting crime, Randall Crissman, a guitar playing television and movie composer with a string of credits that includes the likes of MTV, CBS, FOX and Nickelodeon for shows like Oprah, Dancing with the Stars, Joe Millionaire, Access Hollywood and The View.

Together, they would pen their first album, Vibes Alive (1997-Syndrome Records), which featured the stellar cast of Jeff Lorber, Luis Conte, Jimmy Johnson, Jimmy Haslip and Carlos Vega. Jonathan Widran of All Music Guide would declare, “…Richter takes charge, carrying cool melodies atop those trademark Lorber rhythms and harmonies on 70’s throwbacks like the Hammond B-3 and the Wurlitzer Electric piano.”

Following the release of the Vibes Alive album Dirk Richter and Randall Crissman would form a band named after the album and would head to the studio to record a second album. Scheduled to be released in 2008 via Swingding Records, After Hours combines the stellar cast of the 1997 release with a few new all stars for a hot sound that will sizzle the airwaves.

More on After Hours by Vibes Alive:

The collection of tunes in After Hours is a tapestry of kinetic exchanges between an incredible cast of musicians. These sessions capture the essence and spirit of the music in its most uninhibited form. A master conductor, Richter uses the vibes as a paintbrush that accentuates the communication between each gifted artist. According to Richter, the music is about “going back to the basics of creating music.” It’s about making music without boundaries.

With all the format changes in the industry, the time is ripe for musical change and that fans are eager to have music that is fresh and alive. The team of Dirk Richter and Randall Crissman offer up a sound that is unique, spirited and passionate. Add in solid songwriting and a stellar cast and you have a winner.

After HoursMusician List:

Dirk Richter: vibes, keyboards

Randall Crissman: guitar, synth bass

Jeff Lorber: synthesizer,Wurlitzer electric piano

Gary Meek: sax & flute

Luis Conte: percussion

Vinnie Colaiuta: drums

Jimmy Johnson: bass

Putter Smith: acoustic bass

Bob Summers: trumpet

Written and arranged by Dirk Richter and Randall Crissman

Produced by Randall Crissman

Polarity/1, the multi-genre artist best known for bold, honest, hard-hitting songs, is re-releasing his hit album, Yankin’ the Food Chain, now with re-mastered tracks. Polarity/1’s music has been incorporated by dance theaters and documentarists, including Danny Schechter’s feature-length film documentary ‘In Debt We Trust’ and Battery Dance Company’s 26th Annual Downtown Dance Festival last year.

Yankin’ the Food Chain fuses electronica, acid jazz, alternative and electro-folk to create a set of funky-fresh beats infused with crucial political messages to future generations. The serious issues covered on Yankin’ force listeners to reanalyze their own ethics, especially when cornered with their own self-images in “Look at Your Shoeshine”: “Can you see yourself in your shoeshine?/ Step back!”

From the excitingly chilly vocals of “Salesman,” to the persuasive political raps found in “News Goo,” to the astoundingly real lyrics of “Di Hard” (”The good die young/ and the bad get paid”), Yankin’ has something to offer every music-lover. Perhaps most notable, though, are the album’s funky, upbeat tracks, such as “Boomers Blues,” “Jam Inya Jimmies” and “Cincinnati Pink.” With lyrics like “She’s catchin’ the groove and won’t let go,” it’s obvious that once you put on this Polarity/1 record, you won’t be letting go of the groove either.

Buy Yankin’ The Food Chain:

But don’t take our word for it; here’s what others have to say:

“Polarity/1 is a musical force unleashing some of the hippest beats and timely lyric[s] on the scene” (MediaChannel.org).

“‘Di Hard’ is a medium tempo groove with rapped and sung vocals, everything done by Polar except for exquisite backing vocals by Scott Parker Allen and Sabina Sciubba. The song is a comment on Princess Di’s demise, the role of the media, and the times we live in, serious without becoming sentimentalized or preachy. An interesting exercise in a style that’s very hard to pull off” (Recording Magazine).

“Polar succeeds in his mission of forcing you to pay attention and not lull into the sounds you ‘expect’ to hear” (StarPolish.com).

The music of Polarity/1 is exactly what the name suggests—”conjoined opposites,” including the new (cutting-edge electronica, hip-hop and nu-jazz) and the old (roots music of America, including blues, funk, country and early jazz, Brazil (samba, pagode, etc.) and West African groove science).

After a few years of playing percussion in samba bands at S.O.B.’s and other venues. Polar landed in hip hop which combined his interests in grooves, samples and wordplay into one form. He and rapper D.A.V. became Medicine Crew. In the aftermath of 9/11, Polar was asked to do a remix of Nile Rodgers’ We Are Family Project released on a compilation by Tommy Boy Records. His experience of 9/11 which was perpetrated in his neighborhood led to a collaboration with multi-platinum Pakistan rock band Junoon resulting in their hit song ‘No More’. John Hollander has choreographed four Polarity/1 compositions for New York’s Battery Dance Company’s fall season opening in November 2006 and has been touring extensively with the piece. In 2008, he scored “The Other Side” for the Quorum Ballet from Lisbon Portugal. P/1’s new collaboration, Koko Dozo, released their first album Illegal Space Aliens in February 2008.

And you can check out Polarity/1 for yourself and learn how to purchase Yankin’ the Food Chain by heading to www.musicdish.net/polarity1/

The “Plácido Domingo 40th Anniversary Gala Concert” To Air Exclusively on HDNet Sunday, June 1 at 8:00 p.m. ET

Network to present special concert event in full 1080i HD and 5.1 surround sound

(DALLAS) Broad General Director Plácido Domingo will take the LA Opera into homes throughout the United States as HDNet presents The Plácido Domingo 40th Anniversary Gala Concert on Sunday, June 1 at 8:00pm (eastern daylight time) with an encore presentation at 11:00pm ET to accommodate West Coast prime time. The concert celebrates the fortieth anniversary of the superstar tenor’s first professional appearances in Los Angeles and features arias and duets sung by Mr. Domingo and the internationally acclaimed soprano Patricia Racette. The concert is led by LA Opera Music Director James Conlon, conducting the LA Opera Orchestra.

“Opera is an art form for everyone, and HDNet is helping us to capture this experience for music lovers throughout the United States,” said Mr. Domingo. “Long before television existed, opera was the popular form of entertainment bringing theatre to the masses, so it’s exciting and ironic that we now can use television to bring opera music back to the public.”

“This is an exciting new development for LA Opera and an important continuation of our commitment to bringing opera to all audiences,” said LA Opera’s Chairman and CEO, Marc I. Stern. “The special HDNet presentation, combined with this season’s Great Performances telecast of our production of Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, our recent DVD releases of both Mahagonny and our production of La Traviata, as well as the coming second season of our ‘LA Opera on Air’ broadcasts locally on KUSC and nationally and internationally on WFMT and XM Satellite Radio, truly enable the Company to reach out to a large and enthusiastic audience around the world.”

“The Plácido Domingo 40th Anniversary Gala is a perfect addition to the outstanding programming that HDNet has to offer,” added Mark Cuban, President and Co-Founder of HDNet. “Plus, our presentation of this concert in full 1080i high definition and 5.1 surround sound will let our viewers feel as if they are actually in the audience instead of in their own homes.”

About HDNet
HDNet (www.hd.net) provides viewers with the best in original comedy, drama, news, sports and music programming.

HDNet is your exclusive, high definition home for popular, critically acclaimed original programming, including television’s only HD news feature programs “HDNet World Report,” “Dan Rather Reports” featuring legendary journalist Dan Rather and “NASA on HDNet” (presenting live shuttle launches through 2010). HDNet presents championship sports coverage featuring the National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, the NASCAR Camping World Series, NASCAR Sprint Cup re-broadcasts, boxing and premiere Mixed Martial Arts from “HDNet Fights;” behind-the-scenes sports news with “Inside the NHL” and “Inside MMA;” groundbreaking music programming with the HDNet Concert Series featuring leading artists and bands including Coldplay, Gwen Stefani, Black Eyed Peas and more; entertaining and irreverent lifestyle programming including “Deadline!,” “Art Mann Presents,” and “Get Out!” HDNet is also the exclusive high definition home to the critically acclaimed and award winning programs such as the Emmy Award winning “Arrested Development,” “The Black Donnellys,” “Star Trek: Enterprise,” “Dead Like Me,” “Smallville” and the hit BBC series “Torchwood.”

HDNet Movies features a wide selection of major studio theatrical releases – all uncut, unedited, and appearing in their original aspect ratio so that HDNet Movies viewers get the best possible home theater experience.

Only HDNet Movies’ exclusive “Sneak Previews” bring feature films to viewers before they premiere in theaters! Some of the HDNet Movies “Sneak Previews” have included the Academy Award nominated “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room,” Toronto Film Festival nominee “The War Within,” and “Bubble,” the first of six movies by acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh and produced exclusively for HDNet Films. Other featured films include “Cashback,” written and produced by Sean Ellis, “Broken English,” from Zoe Cassavetes, starring Gena Rowlands, Parker Posey, Drea de Matteo and Griffin Dunne, the critically acclaimed “Redacted” directed by Brian De Palma, and most recently, “Flawless,”starring Michael Caine and Demi Moore. Upcoming “Sneak Previews” include “Quid Pro Quo,” starring Nick Stahl and Vera Farmiga, and “Finding Amanda” starring Matthew Broderick and Brittany Snow, “Red” starring Brian Cox, “Special” starring Michael Rapaport, “Great Buck Howard” starring: Colin Hanks, John Malkovich and Tom Hanks, “Harlem Aria” starring Damon Wayans and “Humboldt County” starring Fairuza Balk, Peter Bogdanovich & Frances Conroy.

Launched in 2001 by Mark Cuban and General Manager Philip Garvin, the HDNet networks are available on AT&T, Bright House Networks, Charter Communications, DIRECTV, DISH Network, Insight, Mediacom, Time Warner Cable, Verizon and more than 40 NCTC cable affiliate companies. For more information visit www.hd.net

About the LA Opera
Currently celebrating its 22nd season, Los Angeles Opera has become, under the leadership of Plácido Domingo, the nation’s fourth largest opera company and a renowned producer of works from the classical and contemporary repertoires. The coming 2008/09 season will be one of the most ambitious and exciting seasons in LA Opera history, with seven new productions, the U.S. premiere of Howard Shore’s The Fly, the return of several of the Company’s landmark productions and the history-making launch of a new production of Wagner’s epic Ring cycle, a first for Los Angeles.

When we last left John Corda, in the guise of drum ‘n’ bass superhero Mashed Buddha, on his full-length CD subdue your mind, he was adding elements, musical elements, to a genre that doesn’t go much past mechanical repetition in rhythm and bleating electro sounds for tunes. To this, he added ideas such as composing songs – with themes that are developed, different levels of sound density, build ups and break downs – and adding elements of funk, rare groove, and heavy bass. Mashed Buddha conceives of his songs and his entire records in compositional terms. In other words, on Zen Conspiracy he keeps things moving like in any good story.

The title track has a stately intro and then the jungle groove kicks in like the opening credit sequence of the coolest noir romance. The relentless, ecstatic drum beat undergirds soulful piano, skittering synth sounds, and deep bass that rumbles with syncopation like dub reggae on ecstasy. The break down adds the earthiness of Afro-Cuban drums and percussion and Latin piano loops that evoke noir mystery. The song’s elements mix, match, swoop down and buildup to unexpected plateaus of resolution. Like his preview EP Four Keys to Zen, this record brings in the element of jazz improvisation. Corda plays a solo that jazzes out but in the soul/blues styles of Ramsey Lewis or Stevie Wonder. This organic, earthbound element offers a nice contrast to the electronica, pumping more blood into the music.

Simplicity returns with the brief interlude “Laz” . Based on a simple funky lick and clocking in at about 90 seconds, it still has a verse and chorus, played on rich sounding keyboards and a skittish percussive track over a phat drum beat, which makes this an actual song. This leads to the next cut, “Temptation” . This song has an easy groove that invites sampling for a rapper, but only one that is having an early ’90s flashback. The multiple tracks of clavinet-sounding keyboards are simply fresh. Corda’s solo has an unfettered joy in its tap dancing rhythms and dense melodic runs. The shifting harmonies keep the music from getting static, and the orchestration of the various melodies and sounds, all building off of one simple riff, are a lesson is how to write a killer track. The keyboard runs drop out, multiply, layer over, and move away from each other. Mashed Buddha always has something happening in his songs.

“Hype” shows how much nuanced feeling can be communicated through electronica. The beat, a bouncy soul rock groove that is mixed with a recurring sound of reverse echoes or a camera shutter – hype, ya heard? – and low end synth licks, is perfect for the psychedelic vogueing that is going on… in my mind. Over top of this rolling river of sound are mysterioso vocals of a self-help nature by the mind-bender Uri Geller; who mutters phrases like, “part three stay positive, relaxed and confident” and “part one clearing your mind” that also cleverly herald another instrumental layer or counter melody from the keyboard. Each element added is not only complementary, but of a different texture. After the break down, previously heard parts of the song – Fender Rhodes chords, wailing synthesizers – come back, but in a developed or altered state. The synth gets edgier, the hype shutter sound gets denser, the low end blasts forth with a nasty fuzzzzz sound.

Just when you thought he would wane a bit from the killin’ ideas and playing, he picks up the pace and not only gets more intense, but weirder. “Tryst” is perhaps the quintessential song on the CD. The beat is jungle drum ‘n’ bass at its most frenzied. The keyboard lick is a combination of chords and melody filtered through the densest white noise. The drum beat is mixed with percussive ghosts of sound that flit around like insects. A counter melody plays with a sound like the spectral organ of Mike Ratledge of the Soft Machine. The piece builds like a hiker climbing a slope to the level peak, resting, then climbing the next hill. In the middle of the song, there is the almost traditional electronica break down. But unlike the cliched break with a bleating mechanoid pulse or a wannabe Latin keyboard riff, here the song rolls into a swirling tsunami of electronic and percussive sounds. The crashing of the waves slides into a heavenly cloud of soulful jazz. Here, Corda takes a piano solo that rocks one soulful statement after the other, bringing that old time freedom jazz feeling to end of the musical journey.

“Arcane Persuasion” ends the CD with a slow, stately, Gothic finale. A pipe organ opens, then the bleating mechanoid sound I dissed earlier comes in, but morphs in and out of demented glockenspiel notes and fuzzy tubular bells.

Let’s be clear: I wouldn’t say I’m an electronica fan by any stretch. Most of it is boring and soulless and uninspired. It says a lot about an artist when he can take parts of a style of music one hates and make music one likes. It’s like turning s%$t into gold. His next record should be called The Alchemist.

http://www.mashedbuddha.com
http://www.myspace.com/mashedbuddha

It seems that everything took an uplifting turn in 2006 when Gunnar and Amethyste started to collaborate more extensively on several projects ranging from Trance – Dance to Ambient. They finally decided to meet in February of 2006 in NYC, then shortly after their first meeting, Gunnar came to spend 3 months in the USA focusing on music composition and production. Their love for each other fueled the creation of Amethyste’s debut CD titled “Ethereal”. Gunnar’s extreme composing ability really showcases Amethyste’s soothing and dreamy ample vocal range. The beautiful music that Amethyste and Gunnar Spardel create have been heard in radio stations in Europe as well as many internet radios. Ethereal warms the heart and shines light upon their acclaimed and distinctive style of music.

MUSIC QUOTES
Delicate and sublime with a stirring of ecstasy dancing over a driving powerful intoxication is what you will find if you listen to Amethyste’s masterpiece – “Ethereal“. If you listen to the album from start to finish you will first encounter silky washes of sound with ethereal vocals. Floating on air is the feeling that Amethyste creates as soulful and ethereal voices of the mysteries above and below soar across an ocean of stars into a celestial downtempo mood. “Ethereal” goes beyond inspiration to new levels of creativity where modern technology and ancient longings collide. At times it is crystalline perfection and at others the warm sounds completely surround you enveloping you in a dreamy haze. Behind the scene of “Ethereal” is also the magnificent composer Gunnar Spardel, who lays down a set of deep ambient beats that creates a tantalizing ebb and flow of exotic sexy moods as a magical calm is unveiled by a journey within the smooth grooves. Amethyste is one of the most profound influences over mainstream Chill out artists, through a new, innovative artistic panache.
- AMAdea Records, BULGARIA

Purchase CD at CDBABY HERE

Purchase MP3 Album at iTunes HERE

Listen to free music at MySpace HERE

Jimmy Bruno’s New Worldwide Reach
Although never his intent, Jimmy Bruno may now be the most influential jazz guitar teacher in history, with students from 40 countries around the world under his direct supervision. Additionally, the JBGI student-body includes a large number of guitar teachers, who with Mr. Bruno’s permission and encouragement are in turn teaching Jimmy’s method to their students. Also, guitarists from areas of the world where there is no jazz instruction at all are converging on the JBGI to learn to play jazz correctly from an American jazz master.

Capacity concerns
Rapid communication amongst the close-knit guitar community, as well as open access to Jimmy Bruno has created a very large influx of students to the JBGI. Addressing concerns that the JBGI may be nearing capacity, Mr. Butler said, “It is true that we reduced our advertising while we regrouped, but we are committed to making the JBGI experience very high quality and it will continue to be available to all motivated students until our new technology is maximized.”

Innovation To Enable Broad Expansion
Empowered by proprietary video technology from JBGI parent company Affiliated Artists, Mr. Bruno interacts continuously with the JBGI student-body. To keep pace with projected growth, a new generation video management system is in the late stages of development at Affiliated Artists, to be deployed later this month. “The new system automates much of the technical stuff, freeing me to spend more of my time with the students and focus on their progress,” said Mr. Bruno. Mr. Butler adds, “The new Student Video Management System will increase JBGI’s capacity to over 4000 students, roughly two years of projected growth.”

Groundbreaking Approach – Hundreds of “Virtual” Master Classes
A large part of the success of the JBGI is the result of jazz guitar master Jimmy Bruno’s “firsthand” interaction with JBGI students. Unlike static online sites, JBGI students receive direct and continuing guidance from Mr. Bruno through video interchanges, which keeps them on track. This interaction is in the form of “Master Classes”, an exchange of videos between students and Mr. Bruno. An added bonus is being able to watch him evaluate hundreds of fellow students via video. This combination brings a depth of knowledge unmatched in any other music instruction approach. There are currently over 450 Master Classes posted on the JBGI, with more added each week.

A Continuation of New Lesson Materials
Since the JBGI opened its door 10 months ago, the amount of lesson material has gone from around 70 formal lesson videos to well over 500 videos, including hundreds of “Master Classes”, and dozens of educational and entertainment videos. The JBGI recently added an adjunct faculty member, Philadelphia-based blues guitarist Johnny DeFrancesco, who created new JBGI course materials that focus on blues and blues-oriented rock.

The JBGI Sports A New Look
In addition to an under-the-covers technology overhaul, the Jimmy Bruno Guitar Institute has just been given a new look. Designed by Grammy-winning designer Jack Frisch, the new look enhances JBGI’s leading edge music instruction mission and signals yet another phase of continued growth for the Institute.

http://www.jimmybrunoguitarinstitute.com

A self-taught pianist, Megan now gets to experiment with drums and dozens of other instruments with her new Mandala. She loves any kind of music – classical, rock, country, Christian – and says the Mandala 2.0 “sounds like a lot of fun.” The only other thing she’s ever won was a 4-foot Snoopy – back when she was just three feet tall. Megan and her mom used to raise Chihuahuas, but she says the business was doomed – they kept more than they sold because the dogs were just too cute to let go. A disability keeps her from work, but she’s looking forward to experimenting with her new Mandala.

“We’re thrilled to award the Mandala 2.0 to Megan,” said Vince De Franco, Synesthesia founder and CEO, and inventor of the Mandala. “Anyone who’s got the gumption to teach themselves piano will love what the Mandala lets them do. It’s for people interested in music at any level. The Mandala lets creativity run wild, making it easy to experiment with sounds and create music. It looks like a drum and it is a drum – but it’s also just about any other instrument you can imagine.”

Synesthesia was behind the stealth online contest, presented here http://www.whatsthatsoundcontest.com/ – designed to showcase the Mandala’s ability to accurately emulate just about any instrument: a drum, a harp, a guitar, a piano, a marimba… and much more. The contest ran in Q1 of this year.

Among the responses were bongos, a sitar, glasses filled with water, a wine bottle opening, a didgeridoo — a wind instrument of the Australian aboriginees — and a bouncing ball in a long tunnel. Several people answered “synthesizer,” and all were entered into the contest drawing to win the prize. Representatives of Synesthesia randomly selected one contest winner from all correct responses.

A Rich, Satisfying Way to Experiment with Music

A new kind of synthesizer, the Mandala 2.0 packages a musical range so wide it simultaneously offers players the top of the line, most accurate model of a physical drum (via 3,000 professionally created, proprietary samples of the Black Beauty Snare Drum) – along with a library of sounds derived from more than 100 other instruments.

It plugs into a PC or Mac with just a USB cable, and its easy-to-use software comes with more than 100 presets for out-of-the-box functionality. Players also can create their own configurations as they explore and discover its astonishing audio range.

One pad can accommodate from one to seven different zones of sound – each of which can be configured as a separate instrument, with an array of specialized settings. Players can have a snare, a bass and a cymbal (or a harp, marimba or organ, or any other instrument) – all in the same drum head, all at the same time. One Mandala can act as one drum, as an entire drum kit, or as an eclectic combo.

The Mandala 2.0 retails for $349, and is available online at http://mandaladrum.com
Each Mandala is hand-crafted and thoroughly tested before it is shipped.

About Synesthesia
Synesthesia Corporation ( http://www.synesthesiacorp.com ) is exploring new sonic terrain with the Mandala™, its patented high-def drum and synthesizer – the only electronic drum that faithfully emulates an acoustic drum, and then transcends it. A new kind of synthesizer, the Mandala offers the world’s fastest trigger, precise strike detection across the entire pad, and a musical range so wide it can be the top of the line Black Beauty® Snare Drum or virtually any other instrument imaginable. The Mandala plugs into PC or Mac via USB cable, and works seamlessly with most major mixing programs. Co-developed with professional drummer Danny Carey of Tool, Mandalas are used by professionals and hobbyists the world over. Vince De Franco – inventor, physicist and musician – founded Synesthesia to develop his state-of-the-art electronic sensor technology and to use it to create products that inspire imagination and exploration. Based in Laurel Canyon, Calif., the company currently has several other products in development.

Zen Conspiracy is available through CD Baby — http://cdbaby.com/cd/mashedbuddha2 and myTracks — http://www.mytracks.com/mashedbuddha

Mashed Buddha is the name of the one man band consisting of John Corda, his keyboards, his computer, and occasional human collaborators. A rarity in the world of electronica and it’s various offshoots, he adds musicality and, the not-so-predictable, human touch to a form dominated by DJs and people who program machines, then let them run through their paces. Mashed Buddha falls under the rubric of jungle and drum ‘n’ bass, but is so much more than the terms imply.

“I like to think of my music as electronica that doesn’t take itself too seriously,” he states. “Mostly it’s a blend of wild musical ideas that constantly run through my head. I tame them with soothing words.” He further soothes them by adding a rock and pop sensibility to the framework of drum ‘n’ bass. He achieves this by using tried and true techniques of songwriting such as creating verses, choruses and bridges from hooks, voices, keyboard licks, snippets of sound and catchy themes.

Unlike his debut CD, ‘Subdue Your Mind’, each song uses drum ‘n’ bass — frenetic drum beats matched against slower bass lines — but also elements of funk, downtempo, and even ’70s jazz fusion. On his latest CD, ‘Zen Conspiracy’, in addition to a richer pallette of sounds and guest vocalist Uri Geller, he incorporates something no one else in this genre uses: jazz improvisation.

Mashed Buddha was born out of Corda’s need to combine his musical tendencies and experiences, maintain his forward-looking creativity, and satisfy his need to communicate with an audience, an audience that approaches music with both mind and body. “Drum ‘n’ bass gives me artistic freedom while tapping into an audience that wants to listen.” In addition, he further explores his musical tendencies and leaves the house of Mashed Buddha, so to speak, by performing live in the Boston area with the acid jazz band Organism.

For more information on Mashed Buddha, visit his website — http://www.mashedbuddha.com — and MySpace — http://www.myspace.com/mashedbuddha –

DJs and radio programmers can download broadcast-ready songs from his album at Airplay Direct — http://airplaydirect.com/music/bands/2386/