Artist description Yellowbelly pours pop, funk, jazz-fusion and soul into a fine, danceable groove

Music Style Afro Pop Rock

Musical Influences Where them on my sleeve. COme see us and read all you want

Similar Artists From the words of media freaks, I have been compared to Elvis Costello, Peter Gabriel, Sting, David Gray, Bourbon Tabernacle Choir and even George Michael. Go Figure

Artist History The Lowdown on Yellowbelly and Naked Yellowbelly’s return to recording, heralded by their new West Coast Music Award nominated CD ‘Naked’, is a happy and long anticipated event. The Vancouver band’s 1995 eponymous debut release was one of those rare musical gems that seem to come out of nowhere, bursting onto the music scene with a fresh, original sound and immediately capturing a large audience of exuberant fans. That CD, a spicy gumbo of pop, funk and African rhythms that bandleader Brandon Foreman absorbed while growing up in Kenya, East Africa, hit the Canadian Indie charts at #1.It held a #5 position for the next five months while the band performed throughout Canada, playing their rhythmically charged music on stages with, among others, The Barenaked Ladies, 54-40, Papa Wembe and Funkedelic maestro Bootsy Collins. Despite relentless touring,Yellowbelly continued to refine their music, experimenting with new influences and different instrumentation while maintaining the underlying essence of their sound: infectious rhythmic grooves, inventive song structures and intelligent lyrics. PMM 10282 Yellowbelly began a hiatus in 1996 and Brandon Foreman spent the next five years on a number of projectsmusical and otherwise-that included starting both a successful recording studio (Discovery Studios) and a family. But in 2001, after relocating to Victoria, he reformed Yellowbelly with guitar ace Ian Battle and released ‘Naked’,which has quickly earned positive notice from the likes of the Edmonton Journal and the Vancouver Sun as well as receiving airplay on CBC, Alberta’s CKUA radio and myriad college stations across the country.Soon Yellowbelly was back on the road, promoting the CD throughout western Canada and last fall,‘Naked’,distributed by Pacific Music Marketing and Festival Distribution,was nominated for a West Coast Music Award as Best Pop/Dance Release of 2002. In short, Yellowbelly has returned to the Canadian music scene with another CD of provocative, inventive music for both the mind and the body, and it’s a pleasure to have them back. "…a tangy mix of pretty much everything… beautifully produced, the record finds a comfortable balance between loose, electric rock and tight world beat – VANCOUVER SUN rhythms. "…tight jazz fusion, funk and worldbeat tunes tumble out with a pop edge that makes your wonder how it all came together…infectious danceable backbeats. – EDMONTON JOURNAL "[Yellowbelly] pours pop,funk,jazz-fusion and soul into a fine,danceable groove." – MONDAY MAGAZINE (VICTORIA) The rhythmic ingenuity and excellence of songcraft that were the earmarks of Yellowbelly’s first release are clearly present on ‘Naked’. But Yellowbelly’s music itself has grown and moved into new sonic realms.Their World Beat-based sound has been augmented and reshaped by British pop, jazz, trance and funk sounds, Pacific Music Marketing Tel: (250) 598-1997 Fax: (250) 598-1923 info@pacificmusic.net www.pacificmusic.net www.mp3.com/yellow_belly influences which Foreman has combined and distilled into a musical m�lange very much his own. A less-is-more use of guitar, keyboards, percussion and bass, (played on several cuts by Alexis Puentes of the Juno nominated Cuban band, the Puentes Brothers) –creates a sparse, sensual and often haunting texture that is buoyed along by sophisticated, dance friendly rhythms. Over top of this background, Foreman, who possesses a supple,affecting voice with a broad range of vocal nuance, delivers lyrics distinguished by content and a literary skill seldom encountered in danceoriented music.The CD’s hypnotic opener, for example, ‘Slightly Hazy’ portrays a substance abuser’s world-weary perspective and his rationale for deciding to "burn the rock just once more". In the CD’s poignant title cut,Foreman reflects on the bloodline that runs through him and connects his father to his infant son. But the weight of the lyrics never overpowers the inspired rhythmic foundation that propels all the songs on ‘Naked’. This foundation is laid bare on the CD’s final cut, ‘Simon’, an infectious, instrumental dance track that skillfully blends tape loops and samples with keyboard, guitar, bass and percussion to produce an intriguing and very danceable result.

Group Members Revolving Door

Press Reviews “…one of (Victoria’s) hottest indie acts. Yellowbelly’s complex musical tapestry has evolved into a genre-busting fusion of world music, pop, jazz and funk. …Foreman is a potent lyricist who fills his songs with sharp, ironic images.” Hollie Shaw Canadian Press “One of (Victoria’s) indie vanguards… (Yellowbelly) are going to be at a national level of prominence in very short order, especially in light of their debut CD…This is a group that knows how to give an audience a musical experience…well-crafted songs … spirit… confidence…defiance…” Frank Peebles PrinceGeorge Free Press “…tight jazz-fusion, funk and worldbeat tunes tumble out with a pop edge that makes you wonder how it all came together. Their new independent, self-titled CD is even more eclectic, despite the infectious danceable backbeats.” Roger Levesque The Edmonton Journal “A musical landscape… Foreman’s sound has heated up into something uniquely his own. …open your ears and mind to a full-length melodic experience and collage for the soul.” Shari Burnett Whistler Pique “(Victoria) group pours pop, funk, jazz-fusion and soul into fine danceable groove.” Monday Magazine Victoria, BC “Yellowbelly offer a tangy mix of pretty much everything. Beautifully produced, the record finds a comfortable balance between loose, electric rock and tight, worldbeat rhythms.” Katherine Monk The Vancouver Sun

Location Victoria, British Columbia - Canada

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