FULL SCREEN
The Sounds of VTech / Bilal Levels   

Lotus, on the concept of the video:

I originally wanted to keep visual themes with another video from my last LP called ‘mmhmm’ off of my last album.  It featured Thundercat as an intergalactic bass player in a super strange world created by ‘Special Problems’.  Since Thundercat was part of this song, I thought it could be fun to continue the visual style and feel of this space opera.  In the end you have this crazy video made of so much mixed media, geek dreams and lots of love.

Check out our review of Bilal’s Airtight’s Revenge, out now on Plug Research:

Jazz-infused R&B crooner Bilal is one of the more unfortunate casualties of major label politics. After releasing a promising, critically acclaimed debut on Interscope, the tirelessly creative singer became stuck in record company limbo when they deemed his potential follow-up unmarketable. While many of his contemporaries shot to fame over the next decade, Bilal remained in purgatory, presumably plotting a Count of Monte Cristo-esque escape from the paper prison that was his contract. Now he’s resurfaced on prominent L.A. imprint Plug Research with Airtight’s Revenge, his first officially released set of songs since 2001 and the next logical step in the Edmond Dantes plan for retribution. Bilal’s rich, soulful vocals, full of the smoky nuances and world-weary imperfections that characterize the most heartbreaking torch singers’ voices, is still very much intact as is his musically adventurous spirit. The six-minute “Who Are You” begins as a wistful ballad with heavily processed drums building tension towards a cathartic, driving middle section before morphing into a reggae-flavored jam session. The gritty syncopations and impassioned falsettos of “All Matter” recall a more youthful, less facetious Cee-Lo if he were on a Marvin Gaye kick. From a precocious 21-year-old fresh out of music school to a thirty-something seeking to avenge a career left hanging out to dry by an unforgiving industry, Bilal has proven that he has the talent and the passion to consistently craft enjoyable yet challenging R&B tunes. Airtight’s Revenge is evidence that he has a lot more good music ahead of him and a reason to make Interscope executives regret letting him go.

—Amorn Bholsangngam

Stream: Arthur Verocai “Caboclo”

(from the self-titled album reissued on Luv ‘n’ Haight)

Brazilian composer and arranger Arthur Verocai’s self-titled 1972 album is counterpart to American masterworks like Inspiration Information or Songs In The Key Of Life. After releasing this single album, Verocai left music for thirty years, returning only recently to composing and arranging. This upcoming show will be his first performance in America ever. This interview by Chris Ziegler.

Is this the first time you ever performed live in America?
Yes—the first performance live in America. But I go to New York two times, I go to Miami two times. I have work in recording studio, and I buy equipment and I travel as a tourist.
Where did you first hear American music as you grew up in Brazil?
The first American musicians? The best for me that I loved playing jazz was Wes Montgomery. And there were others. All the great jazzmen I loved. And classical music—Debussy, Maurice Ravel—Heitor Villa-Lobos, the Brazilian composer. And many others. Rachmaninoff. I like any type of good music!
You studied civil engineering, correct?
Yes, I was a civil engineer.
You’re the second composer in this series to have an engineering background—is there something connecting the two?
I think one thing don’t have anything to do with the other thing! Engineering is different—it is mathematics. It’s not like art.
Was it unusual to have full creative control on your first record?
My first album—at that time, my name was grown-up, and I asked the record label, and everything was given to me. Twelve violins, four violas, cellos, trumpet, sax, trombones, two percussionists, and piano, guitar—everything that I want, they accept. To be a composer in Brazil is not easy. But there have been others who had that opportunity. But I don’t know them.
And you used synthesizers that weren’t available in Brazil at all—what were they?
I had a guy that I knew who had a synthesizer in that time—and I contacted him and I go to his home and they explain and make a little audition of the synthesizer. But it had no keyboards. Only the synthesizer without keyboards—only electronic effects. Of phasing. And electronic effects. And I want to put in my record—the synthesizer—to make a different color of sounds. To give a diversity. Because the album was very diverse—many styles influenced. There was samba, baio, soul, rock—to do everything! Bossa nova—everything influenced me! And the album was a mix of all the ways of the music. I used them because I loved all the types.
What is the song ‘Presente Grego’ about?
About the lyrics? ‘Greek Gift’ was a metaphor—there’s a lot of metaphors because my partner who did the lyrics in this music was a guy very left political. The left side of politics. And he was very revolted with the dictatorship in Brazil. He wanted to say the things but the country was censored. He tell from metaphors—through metaphors. It means the dictatorship was giving to Brazil a Greek present—a present that was not good!
Did you ever feel threatened?
No, no—it was very light, very metaphorical. We did not have aggression and violence in the lyrics.
Did you feel any connection to tropicalia?
My music had nothing to do with tropicalia. Nothing. I was influenced by my friend Milton Nascimento. And another Brazilian composer. But not tropicalia.
What do you think of your acceptance within DJs and in hip-hop?
I love the DJs. It’s proof for my music and my songs that I composed 36 years ago that they are now found by hip-hop and makers of beats. Because they don’t compose—they compose with the sound of other people. They compose with the remixing. I like this! I am inviting it. It’s very good.
Why was there such a long time between your first album and your new work in recent years?
In 2002, it had been thirty years—and I hated the studio now because it’s not for artists. But I was working in advertising and television and commercials and scores and tracks. And jingles! Too many times. And in 2002 I want to come back to my beginning, when I begin studying bossanova, and I make the album because I stopped for too much time. I stopped my career of arranger and composer because I was not in time in 1972 and 1973. The phonographical market did not understand—did not want my work. My work that I want to make is not what they want—what the market want. And my way was to go make music in advertising. And I was very happy—I go along and my sons grow up. I am excited with this—I don’t have problem. But in 2002, my patience stopped. And I sold the studio but before I recorded the second album, and after this I begin composing. I composes pieces off guitar players—quartets and duos and guitar solo. And I compose guitar concert—for guitar and orchestra. Concert number one. This year I will release this concert.
Are people ready for your work now?
Now, the American market. The market here is very hard. There are four styles to play only in Brazil and the sound is very poor in quality. And not have harmony and good arrangements. But in United States, the people—my songs and my first albums—many samplers, huh? And I love it! I go to Los Angeles for people who like my music.
Are you working on new music?
Now am I arranging the concert. To revise all the parts. Many things! There’s a lot of work.
What is your favorite cocktail?
I like to drink whiskey. And a little wine. But I like more whiskey.

ARTDONTSLEEP, MOCHILLA AND VTECH PRESENT ARTHUR VEROCAI WITH ORCHESTRA PLUS MADLIB AND DJ NUTS AT THE LUCKMAN FINE ARTS COMPLEX AT CAL STATE LOS ANGELES, 5151 STATE UNIVERSITY DR., LOS ANGELES. 7 PM / $22.50 / ALL AGES. FURTHER INFORMATION AT VTECHPHONES.COM/TIMELESS.

(from Suite For Ma Dukes on Mochilla)

Suite For Ma Dukes is an original orchestral work inspired by the music of J Dilla, written by Miguel Atwood-Ferguson with conceptual contributions and guidance by Carlos Niño. It will be performed in full for the first time with a 40-piece orchestra as part of ArtDontSleep/Mochilla/VTech’s Timeless series on Sunday, Feb. 22, and the Suite for Ma Dukes EP will be released on the same day. This interview by Chris Ziegler.

Do the orchestral players you work with know who Dilla is?
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson: In my experience, I’ve met three people out of maybe three hundred that actually know Dilla’s music. Probably more have heard it without knowing it’s Dilla. But my main point is saying that Dilla is transcending hip-hop music. The people I hired for February 22 I have a long history with. I sent them emails with links to Dilla. The main point is Dilla conjures up a lot of Debussy and Ravel—two famous impressionist composers. I had a great conversation with Karriem Riggins about this concert—did he have any general suggestions? And he said something really profound to me. Not verbatim, but—‘Just make sure not to feel you have to recreate what Dilla did. Dilla was all about the feeling.’ Besides the impressionism—the really colorful creative thing he had through his music, even the rough-edged beats he did—there is this feeling through most of his music. And to me it’s love. He talks about women in a kind of misogynistic way I don’t admire—there’s that lower side of love, but the other thing I feel is more transcending and it’s what people connect to. It’s very universal. It feels good but it’s more than something just meant to feel good.
What’s it like writing music to Dilla this way? A conversation? A continuation?
Carlos Niño: I’m not writing, so I can’t answer from writing anything. But in spirit, I’d say the philosophy is best described by Miguel when he said he felt like we were continuing a conversation. Rather than covering the ground Dilla already covered, we’re sort of recognizing his spirit and trying to progress further. We’re gonna take all of this wonderful inspiration and energy he put out there and continue talking to him and all the people in the music community and the whole world that are listening that might have the ability to hear this—to really feel this!
M: In a jazz context, a lot of people admire someone like Charlie Parker or John Coltrane. When Charlie Parker was creating the music later called be-bop, he was just being really honest. In his enthusiasm of life, he was creating that music. That’s what we try and do—not recreate, but celebrate. It’s definitely something that happened in the past. But we’re in the moment now—looking toward the future. We have our own thing to say. We’re not trying to hide behind Dilla. We’re actually infusing this with courage and spiritual qualities that are not necessarily easy. But it’s a joy. And people respond to joy. And love. That’s what we’re doing.
What does an orchestral arrangement draw out of Dilla’s music?
M: Life is infinite—infinite spheres within each other—and an orchestra can get into all these spheres. All these pockets of different dynamic and color and texture. And some of the productions Dilla did really invoke a lot of infinite feelings. They’re not just one-dimensional. There’s a lot there. Something subtle can really intimate something else. With an orchestra, we can really get into different worlds within worlds. You think of all the people in the world—it’s so rich and so diverse, and nature is so diverse. That’s what we’re trying to do. I wanna just imitate nature—in infinite wonder—but celebrate it.
How is this different than writing with someone who is right there with you?
M: It’s funny—I work on my Mac and I have all these screensavers. I don’t know how many pictures of Dilla—it changes every fifteen seconds, and I’ll be in some deep moment doing an arrangement, and then his picture comes up! I don’t think there’s such a thing as a coincidence. To me the timing is so profound. It’s like he’s talking to me! No joke whatsoever! And almost every picture he’s smiling and saying something reassuring—it’s amazing.
Carlos, you met Dilla—how does that affect where you feel the music should go?
C: We weren’t close at all. I met him maybe ten times, maybe talked on the phone. In general, I was a big big fan. I wouldn’t say we were close friends or that we hung out a lot. But it was brief and really nice to feel that someone you admired so much musically was a good person. I always got a good vibe from him. Not always in lyrics—that side I don’t always connect with. But a lot of people got into him probably because they related to the content, and then the music. I feel he was very musical as a vocalist and rapper. But for me—I’m a serious instrumentals collector from day one. My radio show is notorious for playing unreleased and hard-to-find instrumental hip-hop alongside music from all over the world.
M: I have a question for you, Carlos—when you spoke to Dilla, was there something unique you noticed in him that touched you?
C: Just a real willingness—he was—in a way—like Madlib is, where he’s a man of few words but very enthusiastic. And his enthusiasm comes out in his gestures and his smile. I definitely appreciate that. Every time we hung out, it was a good vibe. The first time I got him to be at a Build An Ark concert, after I got off the stage, Dilla was like, ‘Yo, man—yo, that was incredible! Anything you need, let’s do something!’ For me, that sort of willingness and openness—some people, no matter how talented, can be caught in their attitude, or their ideas about things makes it hard for them to open up. I felt he was very sweet.
What’s going to be on the eventual Suite for Ma Dukes album?
M: Stevie Wonder and Prince are going to play all the instruments.
C: I’ll remind you that’s where we get in trouble in interviews! Our well-intentioned sense of humor. That’s off the record, or to be mentioned as a very humorous projection! But that is his lineage to me—Stevie Wonder and maybe Herbie Hancock, but Stevie Wonder to me is the quintessential artist in this realm. He did it all—played all the instruments, did the sampling and looping—he was in front and in back of everything. He’s really the guy! The only other person besides I’d say most directly influenced all that was Herbie Hancock. Dude put it down in the ‘60s and ‘70s and ‘80s and continues—his influence is massive in hip-hop, but especially to people like Dilla. So we’re trying to reach out to a lot of wonderful musicians to be part of it. I’d love at least a song or two to be performed by a full orchestra in a live setting—in a real orchestral recording studio, where we do it like a film score. Our vision is vast!
M: One thing that’s important to this is diversity. The music Dilla put into motion is really connected to something profound. We want to celebrate that in as many ways as possible. On the EP—which we’re really happy about!—that’s its own thing. All kind of the same realm. On the full-length, we’re gonna get a lot more diverse. Maybe tracks with some percussionists, maybe some Balkan music to try and re-interpret things—maybe a vocal choir!
How did you decide what songs to start with?
M: Carlos is the one who hipped me to Dilla in the first place. He gave me Dilla mixes and I started massing this library, and I started to understand his language and his vernacular. I don’t know how many hundreds of hours I spent composing! Probably thousands now. Orchestrating this stuff—it’s beautiful but painful also. It’s immense! So it’s me picking tracks I want to spend that much time with. Another influence—on tracks where he takes a sample, I use a lot of those original tracks. On the 22nd, I’m orchestrating some of those original tracks. There’s a Herbie Hancock song—‘Come Running To Me’—that Dilla sampled, and I’m orchestrating Herbie’s version. To give the concert more diversity.
C: I related it the other day to a master chess player who gets to play another master for a year versus a master chess player in the park on a time clock. He’s given a challenge to pull something off on the level he wants in the amount of time it has to be done in! It’s pretty exciting for me to see Miguel wholeheartedly dive into it. It’s a wonderful opportunity but there’s quite a lot of danger there. That’s what I relate to expressing it as a river of creativity—as an ocean! Not only literally about the work or the work he samples—but maybe if we did get Herbie Hancock, we might record something completely brand-new in the spirit of the project that pays tribute to Dilla! In a way, this whole thing can be alive. So often covers are stagnant—why would someone want to redo something that was already done perfect? But it’s because they love it! The reason people cover things is they feel really drawn to it. In the purest sense, we cover songs because they’re great songs. With Dilla, every artist I’ve heard that tried to do what he did did not do it—even the people closest to him. He had his own thing, but he encouraged people to tap into their own thing. That’s really what’s happening here—Miguel is tapping into his own thing! I help with the conceptual and actual facets of it, and the writing is really coming from Miguel’s life.
M: That’s what Karriem said when he said don’t feel like you have to recreate. Like Charlie Parker—people identify with the magic of celebrating that moment, and looking to the future with optimism and courage. It’s not like, ‘Ok, let’s play those exact notes.’ Then you can be sure the magic won’t be there. On the album and the EP and at the concert are full sections where it’s just my original music. I’m consciously trying to create new music to continue what he did and also magnify a certain vibe or sentence Dilla might have said. Carlos talked about Herbie Hancock as an example of maybe coming in the studio to make something new. I want entire pieces to be original compositions dedicated to Dilla! To the whole community we have—to the future also.
What does it say about Dilla’s work that you’ve made this new project?
C: In a word—how soulful he was. When Miguel says he transcended hip-hop—I don’t consider him a hip-hop producer as much as a soul musician. He was doing what I feel like the Motown cats before him did. People like Quincy Jones. Not in a literal sense soulful—not that he sounded like Motown. But it was just—really soulful!
M: When I think of soul musicians, I think Dilla falls in the that category. But when I think of other soul musicians whose work I’d like to interpret—it’s not as cosmic as Dilla’s. To another degree, that’s what answers your question. It’s not just humanity. Yes, he has this soul—it’s really really heartfelt. But it’s something kind of cosmic. When something is so pure and undeniable that it just transcends time—that’s what I think Dilla was doing. Dilla is a new definition to soul music.

ARTDONTSLEEP, MOCHILLA AND VTECH PRESENT CARLOS NIÑO AND MIGUEL ATWOOD-FERGUSON’S SUITE FOR MA DUKES WITH 40-PIECE ORCHESTRA PLUS DJ HOUSESHOES AND GUESTS ON SUN., FEB. 22, AT THE LUCKMAN FINE ARTS COMPLEX AT CAL STATE LOS ANGELES, 5151 STATE UNIVERSITY DR., LOS ANGELES. 7 PM / $22.50 / ALL AGES. FURTHER INFORMATION AND COMPLETE SCHEDULE AT VTECHPHONES.COM/TIMELESS. THE SUITE FOR MA DUKES EP RELEASES SUN., FEB. 22, ON MOCHILLA. MOCHILLA.COM.