Special thanks to Sucio Smash and The Shop, NYC in Ridgewood, Queens for hosting The Du-Rites for an in-store performance in January. And thanks to everyone who came through to support us and picked up a record. Here’s a clip of us performing “The Bronx Is Burning” from our 2017 Greasy Listening album. This one is always better live!
Personnel:
Jay Mumford: Drums, Vocals;
Pablo Martin: Guitar
Bruce Martin: Keyboards, Percussion
Bill Harvey: Bass
I’ve always assumed my TV debut would be an interview on the 5 o’clock news for witnessing something wild, but…it was playing drums in Adrian Quesada’s Boleros Psicodelicos ensemble for Austin City Limits. I’ll take it!
The concert was filmed in October of last year and aired over the weekend on PBS. The concert is now streaming on the PBS website for the next month. Catch it before it expires! To say I’m honored to share this moment with so many insanely talented folks is an understatement.
Enough talking – watch it here! (I’ll link it twice, why not.)
Sung entirely in Spanish by established vocalists hailing from Argentina, Mexico, Guatemala and more, the music is a nod to psychedelic ballads of Latin America from the 1960s and ’70s. The guitar and keyboards capture the psych of that era. The strings, vibraphone and horns take care of the ballad part and the funky drums are covered by yours truly and the rhythm section. I’ve had a lot of ups and downs in my decades as a working musician, but this was no doubt the pinnacle. I wish my grandmother was still here to watch, but I’m sure she’s somewhere eating a bowl of Gumbo watching saying “you knock em dead, boy!” and asking another elderly woman nearby why nothing is in English. I hope you will enjoy.
With the illustrious guitarist Charlie Hunter and George Sluppick (a bad ass drummer and tambourine machine) on a fun impromptu soundcheck jam. Two real deal OGs right here! Had a ball finally gettin’ up/down with these cats after only being IG acquainted for years. A high honor!
This, Stezo’s “It’s My Turn” (which I also covered), half of Ultra’s Critical Beatdown album and Large Pro remix of “It’s A Boy” are all examples of how mixing console/sampler quirks and effects totally altered commonly sampled drums to the point of them becoming their own unique thing. Just Blaze had me replay this groove for him this summer, but I didn’t really try to dial it till now. “Smokin’ Cheeba Cheeba” is a common breakbeat but the vibe of the equipment used and the delays at the end of the song always made it feel like something new. Love playing the JB’s ending with the wild delays but damn that drum sound took a lot of trial and error to dial! I got as close as I could with my set up but I had to play the more drastic delay parts on the set. I added the AWB horn and some vocal snippets from “The Promo” (pitch shifted so I don’t get flagged). One of my favorite drum-related moments on a sample-based record!
Our seventh album in 6 years dropped today on all DSPs (Spotify), on Bandcamp (for vinyl) and in some online shops and mom and pop stores! Overseas crew can save on shipping by getting it from HHV. It’s a very funky one, with guest musicians Tre D’Ambrocia (vibes), Marianna D’Ama (vocals) and The Beastie Boys’ own illustrious Money Mark on keyboards. For those in NYC, we’re playing a weekly residency every Wednesday at Penny Jo’s on 163rd & B’Way in Washington Heights. 8PM and 9:15PM shows.
Thank you for your support in the group making it to album number seven, which is longer than most of our funk heroes lasted!
Ultra talented guitar duo Hermanos Gutierrez dropped their new LP, El Bueno Y El Malo, today on Easy Eye Sound. I played some subtle groove drums on three of the cuts (“Hermosa Drive,” “Thunderbird” and “La Verdad”) – proud to be on it. Shouts to Hermanos and Dan Auerbach for the call. Stream the album on Spotify below and I implore you to see these cats live if you can, their show is the truth!
What an experience this was! I had the honor of playing drums with Adrian Quesada’s Boleros Psicodelicos for Austin City Limits last weekend, as we performed the album in its entirety and more. (I played drums on four tunes on the album). Still buzzing from both the festival and the TV show taping, which will air on PBS in upcoming months. Till then, enjoy some photos from the eye of photographer Greg Giannukos.
Today’s the blast off, funk folks! Our seventh LP, Plug It In, up for pre-orders now on our Bandcamp page. Get funkitized or get flunked!
Pre-order the vinyl LP and/or digital here (digital comes free with the vinyl).
Pre-order will get you 6 of the 12 tracks digitally – the rest of the album comes on release day, 11-11-22. There’s plenty of bundle deals that include some of our back catalog as well.
Oh, and to our overseas supporters – the rising cost of shipping records across the pond is beyond our control. BUT, we’re happy to announce the record is available for pre-order at Rap and Soul Mail Order (UK) and HHV (rest of Europe). That outta save you some dough on the shipping.
If streaming is your thing, follow us on Spotify, Apple Music or your preferred DSP to keep updated for all the digital single and album drops.
Thank you for your support!!
The Du-Rites will be playing Channel Music Fest in Dobbs Ferry on Saturday, Sept. 17. Right on the Hudson River, Waterfront Park. 5PM show time. Free + all ages. After our set, we’re the backing band for LuLu Lewis at 6PM, so you really get us for two straight hours of hard grooving. Half funk, half disco/punk. Opening for Gibby Haynes (Butthole Surfers). A slice of rehearsal footage below. Come by!