Wishtank
Victor Axelrod’s Don’t Trip Studio, Antibalas and more
by: Garrett Heaney
Brooklyn’s Victor Axelrod, aka Ticklah (dub reggae producer behind Easy Star All-Stars and keys player for Antibalas Afropop Orchestra) is opening Don’t Trip studio in Brooklyn. The Village Voice published a quality article about the studio that offers a wealth of information on the musicians in Axelrod’s tribe. They suggest “The next great reggae studio may have finally sprung up… in Gowanus.”
• From the article (published October 30):
“Victor Axelrod, the thirtysomething keyboardist, arranger, and engineer who creates reggae music under the handle Ticklah, decides to open the sidewalk grates early. His aptly named Don’t Trip studio is tucked beneath a Brooklyn sidewalk in a desolate section of Gowanus: Washing machines double as amp stands, keyboards are stacked like pancakes, drums are stuffed in corners, and a large mixing console holds court among egg crates and pegboards full of patch cords. From the street, you follow the trembling sounds of bass and keys down a dark cement staircase. . .”
“Unlike modern reggae, which emphasizes overproduced beats and synthesizer patches while paying little attention to the rhythm section, Axelrod made it a point to use live musicians. “The overall texture of having live instruments is a big part of what I love about the old records that I listen to,” he says. But the studio where they convene is equally important. “Reggae music has always been about a producer rounding up some musicians and going into the studio with some rough ideas. From the beginning, the music was really about records, and making a recording that ended up getting played at the dance hall. And because there was so much emphasis on having a great-sounding record, it may have helped studios to really get their chops together. Different studios and labels began to develop distinct sounds that they could pride themselves on. That studio work is what has really influenced me.”
To read the article in full, visit The Village Voice here.
• More on Axelrod from the Easy Star All-Stars Site (http://www.easystar.com/allstars.html).
“Victor Axelrod grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where he was raised on a diet of British Two Tone, ska, reggae, dub, and other diverse styles. Between the ages of 17 and 21, Ticklah studied jazz with Mike Longo, but the influence of artists such as Augustus Pablo, King Tubby, and Dennis Bovell never abandoned his style. In high school, Ticklah played keys for the Boilers and other New York ska and reggae bands, crossing paths on many occasions with Michael G. After completing college at SUNY Purchase, Victor returned to New York and quickly joined up with a number of musical outfits, including the acid-jazz band Cooly’s Hot Box. In 1994, he accepted Michael G’s invitation to fill a keyboard vacancy in Special Request, whom he played with for the next two years.
“Ticklah could never be accused of being lazy. He has worked continually with Cooly’s Hot Box (releasing an album with them in 2002), played with Desco Records’ retro funk/soul outfit the Soul Providers, the Dap Kings, and the Victor Rice Octet. In 1999, he joined Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, and has since recorded two records and continues to tour and record with them. In 1998, Ticklah released his first record, Polydemic, for Razorfish Records. On Polydemic, Ticklah wore his soul jazz influences—artists such as Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, and Idris Muhammed—on his sleeve, while establishing himself as one of the most talented multi-instrumentalists on the scene. On many of the record’s songs, Ticklah played all of the instruments himself.”
From Wire Tap Magazine: Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra’s album “Security” and an interview with founder Martin Perna
“Antibalas has been around in some shape or form for the past ten years, its tunes carried by the hypnotic rhythms of Afrobeat, a style of Nigerian funk popularized in the 1970s by bandleader Fela Kuti. Its new album, “Security,” is a departure from the band’s past recordings, as it boasts a new label, ANTI, and the stylistic touches of a new producer, Chicago’s John McEntire. The result is an expansive musical experience that’s equally enjoyable on headphones or a packed dance floor.”
“The 17-member band spins out new sounds on “Security,” which resonates with a call for social justice and political responsibility. With song titles like “Filibuster XXX” and “War Hero,” Antibalas dares its audiences to take in more than the music, but the events that inspired them as well. Martin Perna, the band’s founding father, took time after the show in San Francisco to discuss some of the band’s ideas on music, politics and how the two come together on “Security.”
Read the WireTap interview with Perna here.
More on the band and Perna specifically can be found on his resume posted on the Antibals Website here.
From Perna’s resume:
“As a musician, he has performed on scores of recordings, from afrobeat, funk, dub, latin rock, and hip hop. In 1998, he founded Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra, a 20-plus member afrobeat/funk collective… Antibalas has toured in over 15 countries, including appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival… Istanbul Jazz Festival… Roskilde (Denmark), Quart (Norway), WOMEX (Spain), Bonaroo (USA)… and Rikers Island Prison (New York).
“Antibalas has also facilitated discussions about the politics and traditions of afrobeat music at Yale University, New York University, McGill University, Concordia College, Haverford College, and Brooklyn Friends School.
“Other musical projects include his side project, Ocote Soul Sounds, plus collaborations with the groups TV on the Radio, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Apsci, Carlos Mena and Lázaro Galarraga, No Surrender, Cordero, Applied Science, Dr. Israel, Adrian Quesada, Roots Combination, and the Daktaris. He has contributed to the scores of Night Magic and The Devil--s Twilight with filimaker Bernardo Ruiz.”
We thought the following information on Easy Star All-Stars and Antibalas would be of value to you. If the notes below interest you, please follow the links to the sites from which we gathered them.
in goodness.
Garrett Heaney
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• Easy Star All-Stars
“The Easy Star All-Stars are a collective family of some of the finest reggae musicians in the New York area. The band features a rotating cast drawn from a talented pool of players, meaning that every show has its own nuances and its own life. The masterminds behind the All-Stars are Easy Star musical director Michael Goldwasser (a.k.a. Michael G), his production partner Victor Axelrod (a.k.a. Ticklah), and his two Easy Star label partners Eric Smith and Lem Oppenheimer. These four were the team behind the album Dub Side of the Moon (2003), which was a complete reggae re-vision of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. That record has been locked on the Billboard charts for over 3 years.
“Three years later—while the album continues to register on the Billboard Reggae Catalog Chart—Easy Star is set to release their concert DVD, Dub Side of the Moon Live, on June 27, 2006. While over thirty musicians contributed to the Dub Side CD, the DVD finds a tight and crystallized live touring band. Following this release was Radiodread on Augst 22, 2006. The long awaited reggae version of Radiohead’s OK Computer.
More on Easy Star All-Stars here.
• Anitbalas Afrobeat Orchestra
“True, some bands are simply meant to lead, and Brooklyn’s Antibalas —as tough and diverse as the city that birthed them nearly a decade ago — has continued to do just that. The group, whose name means “bulletproof” in Spanish, has indeed proved they possess the mettle to not only survive but also thrive by employing a musical arsenal that has become known worldwide. Initially using the revolutionary blueprint of afrobeat as a launching pad, the dozen-strong members of Antibalas weave a rich tapestry of latin, jazz, classical, funk and soul into their horn-driven mix. Words fail in trying to describe the result: simultaneously polyrhythmic and political, independent and contagious, and the reason why many have credited the band for introducing afrobeat’s framework to a new generation.”
A metric ton more on Antibalas here.
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