Hurricane Season in Brooklyn

A 9 track worldbeat album (39m 13s) — released September 24th 2012 on Studio Brooklyn

Analog Players Society Set To Release Debut Album

Hurricane Season In Brooklyn

On September 25 Via Studio Brooklyn

APS, Led by Producer, Engineer, and Percussionist Amon,

Unveils Their Dynamic Fela Meets Skatalites Sound On Eight Propulsive Tracks

The rich, lively, multi-cultural vibe that Amon brings to his work as the leader and composer of the collective known as the Analog Players Society (APS) is the result of a lifetime of studying the groove. "I got interested in Turkish, West African and Middle Eastern music in college," Amon recalls. "I eventually studied with Famadou Konate, Mamady Keita and M'Bemba Bangora." Spending time in Guinea, learning from the masters, led to high profile gigs as a djembe player. He jammed with Tool drummer Danny Carey in front of 30,000 fans, backed up Lee Scratch Perry and is one of the players who helped refine the combination of live percussion and recorded tracks with DJs including Nickodemus (Turntables on the Hudson) and Chris Annibell (Afrokinetic). To capture the sounds he'd been hearing in his head, Amon put together the Analog Players Society to bring his musical visions to life.

As a partner in Brooklyn's Hook Studios and a well-known session player, Amon forged relationships with some of New York's finest musicians. They readily joined him in the studio for the APS sessions that produced the band's first singles. A smoked-out reggae cover of Shannon's "Let The Music Play," featured Amon's playful glockenspiel and Ethan White's sparkling piano. Wang Chung's "Dance Hall Days" was reinvented as a Jamaican dancehall skank and the Nu Shooz hit "I Can't Wait" was played as a 12/8 shuffle, with a bluebeat meets lover's rock feel, complimented by a smoldering vocal by Cecilia Stalin (Koop).

The tracks were very well received by notable media outlets including Okayplayer and KCRW and work on the APS debut album was almost complete when an out of control taxi rear-ended Amon's pick up. "It left me with a serious back injury and I've had to budget my time so I can practice and keep my chops up." To produce the rest of the album, Amon brought a massage table into the studio and mixed sessions lying on his stomach. "I'm a perfectionist and it took me a long time to find my sound."

The care Amon puts into the mix are evident throughout. "The Hippie don Know" is another rhythmically complex shuffle blending the beats of ska, Afrobeat and hip hop with the sounds of White's sideshow flavored Vox organ and the flowing horn lines of John Natchez on sax and Jonathan Powell on trumpet and valve trombone. The title track borrows a hook from Ann Peebles' "I Can't Stand the Rain" and weaves it into a groove generated by Amon's stomping and hand clapping, Stalin's inventive scat melodies and a sinuous synth-bass line from White.

Although he loves technology, Amon's passion is real people making real music in real time, hence the Analog Players Society moniker. "My session work connected me with the best players in New York. Since I engineer and mix everything, I can continually polish my sound. I like capturing the feel of live music in the studio, but playing live with these guys is the best. We all can learn a set in the afternoon and play it that night. I know I can throw anything at them and when we get on the bandstand, it'll be amazing." In an era of social media and digital attention spans, it only seems apt that music from the Analog Players Society will truly resonate with fans of timeless music.

I’ve known Amon (from APS) long enough to know that, when he put this group together he’d do it with the class, quality and style in which he does everything else. When I premiered ‘I Can’t Wait’, I immediately got hit up from tastemakers around the globe asking for a copy of it. - Jeremy Sole 89.9 KCRW - Los Angeles

Stepping out from behind the drums and moving behind the boards, Amon’s Analog Players Society project showcases the versatility and finesse of this NYC mainstay. Throwback vibes meet modern studio technology producing cover songs like few others I’ve heard…saying that this man has an ear is an understatement. I’m so excited to see what the future holds for this project. - Aaron Schultz / DJ DRM Bastard Jazz

The execution and track selection were so on point we immediately sought out more from these Players. - Jesse Serwer OkayPlayer

Sounds fantastic. These tracks bring the soul to dub and vice-versa. Definitely playing these out. - Tomas A Palermo Magnifier / SF Weekly / K

Great Production & sound! APS bringing these classics back to the dance floor with a twist! - Nickodemus Wonderwheel / Turntables

I charted “Let The Music Play” in the top 22 Heavy Rotation. - Justin Boland / J Boogie Om Records / KUSF / BK Ra

More often than not you can’t go wrong with putting a reggae-ish twist on something, and what the cats in APS do here is definitely all kinds of right, their rich, live instrumental soundbed (including trumpets, saxophone, bass, organ and hand percussion) paired with the jazzy stylings of Swedish vocalist Cecilia Stalin encompassing all of the familiar fizziness of the original with an extra degree of ebullience that’ll leave you yearning to catch them somewhere in person to really soak in this re-fashioned groove. - David Allun Jones Mixtape Maestro

Outstanding versions, sounding just right in Ibiza. - Andy Wilson Ibiza Global Radio / ibiz

And we thought we’d heard them all. Then we discovered a REGGAE version of “I Can’t Wait”. Pretty cool. fb.me/WZT6zALy - Nu Shooz Music Nu Shooz

Sounds fantastic. These tracks bring the soul to dub and vice-versa. Definitely playing these out. - Tomas A Palermo Magnifier / SF Weekly / K

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