After Winning a Grammy-Award, what’s next?
Niles
0:00:00
Good morning and welcome.
Bijon
0:00:08
You're listening to B-Side Morning Brew with Beej and Niles. Hot coffee, cool chatting, chilling on the corner of Lifestyle Lab and Music Street on
Niles
0:00:19
91.5 KUNV Jazz and More.
Chipmunk Voice
0:00:22
Let's start with our sip of coffee.
Bijon
0:00:25
Oh yeah, oh yeah. That's it.
Niles
0:00:28
Really?
Niles
0:00:29
Well, let's just get right into it, brother. We were- Jump right in.
Bijon
0:00:33
The water's warm.
Niles
0:00:35
Come on in.
Niles
0:00:36
Come on in. It was the other day,
Niles
0:00:38
we were trying to figure out topics
Niles
0:00:39
for this particular show,
Niles
0:00:40
and you and I started down this road of booking our respective bands, if you will, right? Our projects. Projects, right. respective bands if you will right our projects projects right and
Niles
0:00:55
We realize like we should save We should save this conversation for the radio show because it is quite interesting Topic in terms of the trials and tribulations of booking right whether you're booking a big band or a trio. It's kind of Well, there's differences, but in terms of there's some some huge similarities there, so it's festival seasons coming up right? Live music
Bijon
0:01:18
season you know people are getting out
Niles
0:01:21
of the house they want to see some live music. Yep like for instance with
Bijon
0:01:32
the with your project with the Generation Jazz Orchestra. Yeah
Niles
0:01:42
like what's going on with you guys and you know in terms of booking or what are you guys trying to do right now? Well you know we're at a point in that, or we'd like to do another album. Well before, okay before that then, right, so in terms of music business, so we can let the audience in on how that
Niles
0:01:49
works, so you've got your first album out, do you feel, other than the award, obviously, other than the Grammy, do you feel that you honestly have gotten what you really wanted out of that album in terms of really letting people know it exists, how many people know it exists, touring the album, things like that. Have you really given it a shot?
Niles
0:02:09
Or as most musicians, we all know, once we put out something, we're already bored and we want to move on to the next thing anyway. And we don't truly give our albums a real chance for the listeners to really soak it in because creatively, we're already on to the next thing, which is unfair
Niles
0:02:27
to the listeners, quite honestly, and maybe to us as well. But do you feel that your first record, you guys have really stretched that out to where you that you that you need to end or want to?
Bijon
0:02:38
Well, it's interesting, because usually, it's kind of like a chicken or the egg type situation. Usually, you're spending time performing the content from that album to garner respect and recognition, or not recognition, garner publicity in audiences in order to hopefully get a Grammy or hopefully get some type of recognition. We kind of did it backwards. We introduced, you know, the nature of the way music is disseminated now we released things on streaming platforms and did a live
Bijon
0:03:18
release show but leading up to that before we did the release show it was after the Grammy voting had been done right or at least the first round so a lot of what we did we never performed with the band live prior to the Grammy voting so in terms of traction for the album, most of it was done through publicity and public relations and which is interesting too because you need to have some type of presence in order to book a gig, right? You can't, you don't just go up to Carnegie
Bijon
0:03:53
Hall and say, Hey, we want the Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra. It's like, well, what press do you have? Where, where can we find your music? Are there any clips of you performing, you know? So it's very interesting, the path we took. But in terms of now that we've had the album out there, met with some critical acclaim and some success, no, we haven't really had an opportunity because the group not only is so large, you know, the 18-piece big band, with special guests, we have not really maximized that. So what's interesting now is we're putting together a package to be able to present that on the next
Bijon
0:04:31
level. Now with that, go ahead, sorry, and approach these venues and say, Listen, here, here's what the group entails. Here's what the budget is, here's what everything is, is this something you'd be interested in?
Niles
0:04:43
Well, and with that in mind, you know, we're talking about an 18 piece band. And so that's quite the personnel, that's quite the dollar figure in terms of whoever's going to book the band, right? And logistics. Yeah, so I could just, the Trials and Tribulations just there alone, I can imagine are quite quite large and would limit you in terms of like how many shows you can realistically play at this time per year, right? So maybe what, two to three shows max, if you're getting the budget?
Bijon
0:05:17
You know what I mean? If you look at some of the more established big bands that have garnered some success over the years, like a Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, and obviously we're talking about just on one level of the size of a group, Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra, Count Basie, Christian McBride Big Band, Gordon Goodwin, you know, all these big bands that are out there that are somewhat in the mainstream, Monkestra, we're only doing four to five shows a year and those are established
Niles
0:05:46
groups. On labels, right? Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra has only been around three years, technically. Two years. With that in mind, depending upon where you'd want to go with it, I mean, could you, if you, we've kind of talked about, I think I know the answer to this, but could you whittle that band down to get the music across to play live shows, if you wanted to play more live shows and just whittle that band down, you know?
Bijon
0:06:06
No, because part of the allure of having that band there is the fact that it's made up of all these all-star players. So in fact, in some of the contract negotiations we've had, it's like, well, we need to have a majority of the core group there. You know, maybe not curtailing or whatever, that's a whole different price point. But yeah, we need to have the majority of people that were on the album perform. Yeah, this festival, that was a mandate. So right, you know, but by the same token, you're allowed to command more of a fee. Because
Bijon
0:06:43
well, you want to get this all star group. Well, this is what the all star group costs. Yeah. And everyone, everyone wins ultimately, but it does require that. So that is the upside of having the success we've had so far.
Niles
0:06:56
Yeah, which then leads, so I mean in terms of wanting to or getting ready to do the second album, what do you really want to achieve out of this? Aside of the obvious of, you know, submitting once again for the Grammy nomination at the very least, things like that. Other than those kinds of things, I'm talking about, well, unless that's just what you guys want to do or is it more important to get it out like you want people to love What you're doing and as a result would want to play live and people adhere to what you're doing I mean we all have our goals of What we want out of the music right so the yes the question I would have is are you guys just wanting to get the
Niles
0:07:30
Accolades or are you wanting to really get an audience and do your thing you know what I mean?
Bijon
0:07:38
Well, I think, as with anything, when we formed this project, if you will, we had a mission that we would include people from generations to make music together. So we've got this literal generation gap within the sections, within the artists that we present, and it's been a vehicle to present original music, original arrangements and such in this format, big band format. So from a project standpoint, yeah, we definitely want to keep doing it with that in mind and
Bijon
0:08:12
we think that that has appeal to an audience and build an audience and also through the artists that we bring in to perform in the band as guests and with the core group that we've already put together.
Niles
0:08:24
Yeah, no, it's such an interesting thing, right, in terms of, again, with the projects, having business strategies, you know, when we're kids and you just were playing music, because we love to play music, not that we love playing music now, obviously, but in terms of the strategy was like, let's just write songs, let's do this, and let's record, and let's just have a good time. And now, you know, as we get older, we're talking strategies. And there's, you know, it's a business at the end of the day. And it's really trying to find
Niles
0:08:47
that happy medium. And I do want to talk about that in our next segment coming up but in the meantime why don't we play a Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra tune for our listeners. What would you like to play? So I mean there's so many great tunes off that album. Easy on the selling point.
Bijon
0:09:07
Every song is just phenomenal.
Niles
0:09:11
Just a huge hit.
Bijon
0:09:12
I mean, you just, you can't lose.
Niles
0:09:15
Yeah.
Bijon
0:09:17
But I really think that one of the songs that, or one of the tunes on the album that really best represents the band is a tune entitled, well, it was the lead track off the album, I've Got Algorithms, and it featured the whole sax section.
Bijon
0:09:39
It really exemplifies what a big band is all about musically.
Niles
0:09:45
Well, what is that? What is a big band all about?
Bijon
0:09:48
In the tradition of the big band, it comes from a swing tradition, swing, jazz, some of the traditional jazz chord progressions. And so this tune exemplifies that as the rhythm changes based off the tune I've got rhythm and so this is an original tune written by Stephen Feisky and Performed by the Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra entitled I've got algorithm a little homage to the younger generation
Niles
0:10:15
Dealing with social media, etc. I like it. You're listening to it here with beside morning brew on 91.5 K UNV jazz and more on 91.5 KUNV Jazz and more.
Niles
0:10:29
the the the so so so
Niles
0:11:52
the the the so Welcome back! You're listening to B-Side Morning Brew with Beej and Niles on 91.5, KUNV, jazz and more. That last tune you
Bijon
0:15:18
heard was Tune Off, our Grammy Award-winning album from the Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra. Tune was entitled I've Got Algorithm. I've Got Algorithm, baby.
Niles
0:15:27
That's right. No, man, it's slammin', dude. It's slammin'. It'll be interesting to see what your next record's gonna be, quite honestly. I mean, obviously in the same
Bijon
0:15:34
vein, but it'll be... And it's gonna be a live album, too. We decided we're gonna do a live album.
Niles
0:15:39
Okay.
Bijon
0:15:40
So record over two or three nights at a venue and a couple of guests and take the best tracks from that.
Niles
0:15:48
Love it.
Bijon
0:15:48
We'll do it live.
Niles
0:15:50
Yeah, there's no pressure on that.
Bijon
0:15:51
None whatsoever.
Niles
0:15:52
Hey, if you're gonna hear mistakes and all, it's like, you know, might as well go for it. Hey, they did it with Basie and they did it with, you know...
Bijon
0:15:58
I think that's the best way to do it. Sinatra's album, Live at the Sands, Live at Capitol, all that stuff.
Niles
0:16:04
I think it's the best way to do it. It really makes sure you're on top of your A. I mean, you've got to be on your A game to do that, man. You can't be messing around. That's cool. But you're working on a project, too.
Bijon
0:16:16
I think what's interesting about our relationship is that whenever we come together as artists, we both... Come together! come together as artists we both come together take it easy right we can whatever we do is come yes right that's right I thought that was my my I know
Bijon
0:16:47
I'm stealing it from you whenever we come together it's great and and we bring our mutual influences together make some great music but we all also like to pull from things outside that we, you know, let me rephrase that. Each of us has our own interests and our own projects that we like to do outside
Bijon
0:17:19
of what we do together at Jazz Republic. Yeah. And you know, what I love about, have always loved about working with Niles is that because he comes from a, a more of a songwriter tradition and being a band but completely different set of influences. And he's like a chameleon. And this latest project he's doing, why don't you tell us about this latest project that you're working on?
Niles
0:17:29
Yeah, man, I'm really excited because it's been stretching my everything, my guitar playing, that I haven't pushed myself in so long. So this has been exciting just on that front. So I've been, I put together what I'm calling the Velveteen Flowers. And it's a, for lack of a better description, it's a rockabilly swing band. And it's a trio. So me on guitar, you know, we've got bass and drums. I wanted to whittle it down to a trio, because I was in a trio for years, as you know, but I was the bass player and singer back in those days.
Niles
0:18:04
But I wanted to whittle it down to just to kind of test myself. It's like, you know, how big can I make this music with three instruments? And I realized quite a bit, you know, I mean depending upon how you play and I love that challenge. And the music, I mean, I've been going back to, you know, some of the classics, you know, even Elvis and such and all the great blues players. And and of course, in terms of into the 80s, you know, the Stray Cats. And then you've got a lot of the great swing bands like Squirrel Nut Zippers
Niles
0:18:37
and Royal Crown Review and all those guys. But they when they brought that thing back in the 90s. And I realized, like, I'm having a blast and and forgot about how much jazz is really integrated into the chordal movements of Rockabilly Swing, you know, a lot of country in there too, some of that country twang. With this, the other reason I'm having such a blast is because, you know, normally, and those of our listeners who have been to our concerts,
Niles
0:19:03
my stuff is normally pretty down-tempo, chill, pretty haunting, noir-like, and this stuff is just much more fun and uplifting and you know me dude that's kind of that's a stretch for me to do that and yet oddly enough it's become so natural and I'm having a great time putting this record together and so I'm launching the first single which is which I'm going to play here in a little bit but I'm launching the whole project March 1st so
Niles
0:19:35
So with the website and all the social media, of course, profiles as well as the single and the music video we already shot, which I'm really excited about. And I'm looking forward to playing live a lot for numerous reasons. One, because I think to get people up off their seats and dance and move and have a good time is I'm really excited about. Trying to book a trio is seemingly much easier than booking an 18-piece big band or even
Niles
0:20:05
a 5-piece or a sextet. It's just easier to book that idea and hopefully make a little bit more money off that as well. You get a little bit more from whether some of these clubs doing the door deal or flat raid or even the festivals, you know what I mean?
Bijon
0:20:28
It's um, so I'm looking forward to it.
Niles
0:20:32
You definitely have more options in terms
Bijon
0:20:35
of venues, hopefully, that you can perform at, first and
Niles
0:20:41
foremost. Yeah. You know, 18 people on stage versus three. Yeah. The sheer physics of it. Well, you know, what's funny is that when we went to go record the music video,
Niles
0:21:07
we played the song live, even though ultimately we tracked it I was playing with the boys because, you know, I had, when I recorded these tunes, I've already had the drum tracks from George Doom, our old pal in LA, and then I recorded, of course, the bass and guitar parts. And so when playing with the band, it was really exciting because it was the first time we did that, and I thought, man, this sounds big as it is. And even Rob Katz,
Niles
0:21:16
our engineer who's done our records, because that's where we filmed the video, he stopped us and goes, man, you guys sound like you've been playing for years. Of course, we've got VIP on bass, Nick VIP Schmidt, and then I've
Niles
0:21:44
got Nick Wiggs Kittle on the drums. And Nick Kittle used to be one of the... he was a blue man in the blue man group for a now that I've heard the band live, now I'm not so shy about being in a trio. I'm like, because you know, when you're in a trio, I mean, it's pretty, you're new. You're exposed, man.
Niles
0:21:48
It's like you can't mess up. And if you do, everybody knows it, you know, you don't have horns helping you out. I don't have that warm blanket anymore. Like when I'm with when I'm with our Jazz Republic band, you know, it's funny for me. It's like right now, I'm just having a great time with music again Which I haven't in a while and not that I don't always love it, but there's a different excitement and and
Niles
0:22:09
Love and passion for this and it just puts a smile on my face With this whole new project. I love it. I love velveteen flowers believe me we like happy Niles
Bijon
0:22:18
We really enjoy Happy Dials being around. So, why don't you introduce some of this new music that you're working on with Velveteen Flowers. What would you like to have our audience hear?
Niles
0:22:37
Yeah, man. I've been watching a lot of the old classic movies with Cary Grant and this, and I like to catch a thief, and it kind of got me on the spark of being the cat burglar kind of idea, right? So this song that we're going to release first which is what the music video will be out in the next week or two as well this first single off the album is called Sleek Cat Slippy.
Bijon
0:23:00
All right you're listening to 91.5 KUMV Jazz and More B-side Morning Brew with Beej and Niles.
Music
0:23:15
He rides under a full moon light Like a shadow clad in black Sleek cat slipper roaming around at midnight Mr. Sophisticated cat He sets your soul on fire He's the devil with a love despair The glamorous lady, secret lover's fan Mr. Sweet Cat Slippin' He's makin' front page news
Music
0:23:49
Mr. Feline Frisky He's gonna steal your heart from you Hey, pretty baby
Niles
0:24:01
Pretty baby, it's alright, gonna be alright
Niles
0:24:09
Meow Scale in the rooftops late at night Through the windows of desire Feline pricks you're gonna strike at midnight
Music
0:24:17
Love thief remains for hire A diamond line for mischief In a rich kitten lover's game
Niles
0:24:32
It's the case of the mystery love cat
Music
0:24:34
Kitty, a fair one without a name Mr. Sleek Cat Slippy He's making front page news Mr. Feline Frisky He's gonna steal your heart from you
Niles
0:24:44
Mr. Feline Frisky
Music
0:24:46
He's gonna steal your heart from you Mr. Feline Frisky He's gonna steal your heart from you My first game
Niles
0:24:54
Is gonna steal your heart from you Hey, pretty baby It's alright, gonna be alright Hey, pretty baby
Niles
0:25:11
It's alright, gonna be alright
Niles
0:25:15
The clouds under the full moon light
Niles
0:25:18
Like shadow clad in black Sleek Cat Slippy roam around the midnight, Mr. Sophisticat He sets his soul on fire, he's the devil with a love to spare Quoting all the glamorous ladies' secret love affairs
Music
0:25:55
Mr. Sleek Cat Slippy
Niles
0:25:59
He's making from page to news I hate you Mr. Feline Friske Still steal your heart from you Hey, pretty baby It's alright, it's alright
Niles
0:26:22
Hey, pretty baby, it's alright, gonna be alright Welcome back. You're listening to B-Side Morning Brew with Beej and Niles on 91.5 KUNV Jazz and more. That last tune you heard was Sleek Cat Slippy, a new tune from Niles Thomas'
Bijon
0:26:45
Velveteen Flowers project. Man, that's a fun tune, man. That is definitely a departure from some of the music we've worked on in the past together and also some of your other solo projects. So, really proud of you, man. That's some really great stuff. It's great to hear you sing in full voice. We haven't really done that in a long time.
Niles
0:27:27
It's been a while, I know.
Bijon
0:27:28
And you sound great, man. So I'm looking forward to hearing more from that. We invite you to go to thejazzrepublic.com and sign up on our mailing list. Something for you to save the date for is our upcoming show at the Smith Center on September 10th. And, but we also have, oh, go ahead.
Niles
0:27:50
No, I was gonna say, sorry to interrupt you, man, but I was gonna say, I mean, this one, this show I'm really excited about because we're bringing up a handful of friends and collaborators to this show and just making it a really fun show. Not that they haven't been fun
Niles
0:28:04
before of course, but it's just nice to have a handful of musical guests come up
Bijon
0:28:09
there with us and absolutely jam. We're also looking forward to a couple of surprises that we have in store for our audience. We're looking forward to doing one of our first surprise pop-up shows at an intimate location to be announced soon. So we really want you all to be the first to know about that. Well my friend, well my friend, the time has come.
Niles
0:28:35
It's that time to raise the roof and have some fun. We're going to party. What a great song man.
Bijon
0:28:45
Yes, right.
Niles
0:28:48
I wish. We know our listeners are now going to go, they're all gonna go and go put on that song
Bijon
0:28:53
I mean come on exactly come on. That's a great tune as always We want to thank 91.5 K UNV jazz and more for being our media partner as well as high note roasters keeping us Fresh as a daisy first thing on there beside morning grew and we want to thank you the listeners for sticking with us We'll look forward to seeing you in the audience at one of our shows coming up real soon
Niles
0:29:18
thank you everyone enjoy your sunday
Bijon
0:29:26
you've been listening to b-side morning brew with bij and niles chilling on the corner of lifestyle app and music street on ninety one point five on ninety one point five
Niles
0:29:35
MusicStreet on 91.5 KUNV Jazz and More.
