THE DECODERS

DOWNLOAD HERE: https://thedecoders.bandcamp.com/track/respect-feat-mara-hruby-van-hunt

 The Decoders are at it again with another Rotary Connection cover of a cover, the classic known as "Respect" made famous by the likes of Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin.  This time, they have enlisted the talents of Oakland based chanteuse Mara Hruby (www.marahruby.com) and the illustrious Van Hunt (www.vanhunt.com).  This track will be included on their upcoming full length album release, "Adventures From Paradise: A Tribute To Minnie Riperton" coming out later this year.  Check out the video for "Respect" which gives an intimate look into their process of working on the song here: http://youtu.be/nItqHDvHwoo

Respect feat. Mara Hruby & Van Hunt

Bayacou Records presents the long anticipated collaborative album between soulful powerhouse duo Ezel & Rona Ray. Having consolidated their position with an array of previous singles, all of them achieving critical acclaim, they are now ready to unveil to the world their magnum opus in a full album experience showcasing the depth of their joint creative vision.

Hard to Stay Away' their first collaboration together back in 2021, that is also included as one the songs of the album,  still sits at the helm of the main editorial charts in Spotify, has seen the constant spin of Djs such Dj Spinna, Kai Alce, Isoul8 among others and its currently on its fourth repress cycle on vinyl as its physical inception has become a strongly coveted item featuring one of the most distinct and memorable remixes of UK house maestro Atjazz.  Their follow up single 'No Gravity' unique for its clever use of an odd time signature 5/4 over 4/4 dance constancy hits you like anything else you have heard and immediately makes big guns in the genre notice, as if these two are trying to really tell us something here.  Later, in the summer of 2022 their first real summer hit arrived in the form of 'Don't Know Yet'. Even to this day you can hear house music royalty like German house don Mousse T,  new generation powerhouse Ash Lauryn, the iconic Natasha Diggs and even the world famous Seth Troxler include it in their sets as it has been documented on several social media posts. And if you are thinking that marked the ceiling for these two, what they did with their latest single 'History Repeating' was the last straw that broke the camel's back as they say, an instant #1 traxsource overall hit that saw massive overall support and was literally played everywhere especially in discerning floors in the UK and the United States as their superbly sound was put in world Dj Spen conveyed to Ezel as 'how modern soulful house should sound in 2023' 

That brings us to the present time where they finally connect all the dots for people to see and bring us 'Take Me Home', the definitive testament of their collaboration that spans over 3 years. It highlights the chemistry between the duo, their wondrous interplay of influences, all encapsulated in deeply satisfying modern dance music, and especially with the common denominator that is soul and authenticity that is what they bring.  The album starts with a 1 minute 20 sec intro track that feels almost as what you would imagine if they put together a live show, which we hope they do. It immediately reel you into their sonic world bringing a sort of wow factor as depicting things to come.  The next 14 songs take you thru the motions of the distinct 'house flavors' they pick to display above all amazingly written songs that depart from what you would expect from the vocal house anthems they have established before as in 'Don't Know Yet' 'History Repeating' going to the more stripped down 'Hard to Stay Away' but they dive into new territory, adding new spice to their core soulful house groove and that's how they tease us some live funky bass, throwback percussion with the disco infused 'Endless Summer', some heavy 90s energy with the crafty and lyrically unique 'Forrest Gump'  and even more electronic almost disclosure like propositions in the case of  'If I Am Being Real' and 'Nothing is What it Seems' where Ezel's precise use pitched vocal samples enhance Rona's inherent classic R&B flair in her vocal delivery.  Other memorable cuts are 'Floating' that features tasty horn licks, a contribution from the famous Horn section that accompanies DJ Natasha Diggs on their infamous 'Soul in the Horn' parties. The album also features a song homonymous to the album name 'Take Me Home'. it carries the essential elements to their now trademark formulas for soulful hits: a great song composition arranged to perfection with the most infectious groove.

Take Me Home

Forest Gump

Before Then (With The Naked Eye)

Here's a classic lovers rock instrumental to vibe out to brought to you by The Decoders!  A special treat to share as a free download before our next single release March 20th!  Co-produced by Salvador Santana.  Enjoy!

Nice & EZ (Itaimusik re-edit)

Wax Poetics is proud to stream the Decoders' cover of the Rotary Connection joint, "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun," which was produced by the great Charles Stepney. The track features our homies Loren Oden and Brooke De Rosa.

Purchase the track on <a href="http://thedecoders.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-black-gold-of-the-sun">Bandcamp.</a>


* * *

Riding on the heels of their first single off of <i>Vol. 2 (Walk On By)</i> with its orchestral soul arrangements, the second single from <i>Vol. 2</i>, Rotary Connection's "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun," is an ode to the beautifully epic orchestral arrangements of producer Charles Stepney.

But this time, the Decoders have decided to venture into the Brazilian repertoire, incorporating Samba and Jazz elements into the group's psychedelic soul arrangement.

This version features <a href="http://soundcloud.com/wax-poetics/sets/venice-dawn-something-about/">Adrian Younge's Venice Dawn</a> vocalists Loren Oden and Brooke De Rosa on vocals, as well as Jungle Fire's Steve Haney on percussion and Brazilian musician Quetzal Guerrero on percussion and berimbau.

The artwork for the single is an original painting by Los Angeles–based artist Michelle Robinson. Michelle's work has been praised by Cee-Lo Green, among others. For more info, check out her <a href="http://www.michellizm.com/">website</a>.

CREDITS:

Produced by the Decoders

Loren Oden 
Lead Vocals, Background Vocals

Brooke De Rosa 
Background Vocals

Itai Shapira 
Bass, Guitars, Synth, Vocal Arrangements

Todd M. Simon 
Trumpet, Horn Arrangements

Adam Berg 
Piano

Tracy Wannomae 
Saxophone

Thomas Lea 
Violin, Viola

Steve Haney 
Percussion

Quetzal Guerrero 
Berimbau

Blake Colie 
Drums

Engineered by Itai Shapira and Adam Berg at Manifest Music 
Additional engineering by David Burris at Manifest Music 
Mixed by Itai Shapira and Adam Berg at Manifest Music 
Mastered by Adam Berg at Manifest Music

Originally written and recorded by Rotary Connection (1971)

Michelle Robinson: Original Artwork • Anthony Valadez: Cover Art Design


The Decoders "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun"

"Dub Mixes Volume 1" is our latest adventure into the dub room, taking the Jamaican Lovers-Rock classics of our first EP, Volume 1, and giving these studio versions a dub treatment.  We reached out to our extended family for the production, as well as doing our own dub versions.  The mixes for the EP include the talents of DJ Prophecy, Blakesbeats and our very own core production team (Itai Shapira, Todd M. Simon and Adam Berg).   We had so much fun twisting knobs and tweaking the filters on these mixes, and we're very excited to share with you our latest venture into the Jamaican tradition of "dubbing" these classics...enjoy!

Baby This Love I Have (Adam Berg Dub mix)

AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD HERE: http://thedecoders.bandcamp.com/track/reasons-feat-jimetta-rose

The debut single off of the forthcoming LP Adventures From Paradise : A Tribute To Minnie Riperton (vol. 3), Reasons is the Decoders latest offering, tackled beautifully by local LA native songstress Jimetta Rose and featuring a stellar cast of session players from Los Angeles to Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

The Decoders chose to take this classic Minnie track, and transform it into a celebratory, Jorge Ben inspired Afro-Brazilian samba. Featuring Brazilian trombonist Fabio Santana de Souza, and percussion by Te'Amir Sweeney and Steve Haney, this arrangement is yet another tribute to Minnie Riperton's depth of songwriting and musical prowess. 

Stay tuned for more upcoming releases from vol 3! The full length album is due in late Summer/early Fall.

Reasons feat. Jimetta Rose

Recorded live at the KCRW presents "An Evening with Gilles Peterson" live radio show at Sonos Studio on the evening of May 23rd, 2013.  It was hosted by Jason Bentley and featured special guest appearances by Om'Mas Keith and Shafiq Husayn of Sa-Ra Creative Partners, Egon, Seu Jorge, The Decoders and many others.  

During the Decoders set, Seu Jorge joined the band in an impromptu rendition of his previously recorded cover of Roy Ayers' classic hit "Everybody Loves The Sunshine" 

Here is a portion of the magic captured from that evening.  Enjoy! 

The Decoders:

Special Guest: SEU JORGE - Lead Vocals

Todd M. Simon - trumpet, flugelhorn
Itai Shapira - Bass
Adam Berg - Rhodes, Hammond B3
Blake Colie - Drums
Steve Haney - Percussion
Patrick Bailey - Guitar
Tracy Wannomae - Alto & Tenor Saxophone
Destani Wolf - Background Vocals
Love Logiq - Background Vocals
Jimetta Rose - Background Vocals




Everybody Loves The Sunshine feat. Seu Jorge

In only a couple of years, Los Angeles production trio (Todd M. Simon, Itai Shapira and Adam Berg) have cemented their reputation in the studio and on stage as the premiere production team and live band for artists like Rhye, Kelis, and Hollie Cook.

They have also garnered the attention of great worldwide tastemakers such as KCRW music director Jason Bentley, the legendary Gilles Peterson of the BBC, Jaime Cullum, Okayplayer, Saint Heron, Wax Poetics, Bandcamp and many more.

Rarely emerging from behind closed studio doors, The Decoders love combining their specialized brand of "decoded" classics from the 60's and 70's soul movement with an excitingly new blend of genres ranging from Lovers Rock to Dub, Brazilian Music to Psychadelic Soul.

Coco O. (of Quadron), Noelle Scaggs (of Fitz & the Tantrums), Leon Ware, Raul Midon and many others have lended their vocal talents to this special project with more to surely come for each new volume.

In a live setting, The Decoders are 10 to 20 piece ensemble featuring LA's top musicians and session players.  Thus far, they have released 2 volumes and a dub remix EP, including a few tunes from their upcoming LP, Adventures From Paradise: A Tribute To Minnie Riperton (vol 3), which will be completed in the summer of 2014 and features special guest vocalists and musicians including Bilal, Van Hunt, Mara Hruby, Andreya Triana, Alice Russell, Jimetta Rose, Niki Randa, and many more.


"This is not music, its chemistry. Get into the science." -Okayplayer.com

For more info, check out their website at www.thedecodersmusic.com or go to www.thedecoders.bandcamp.com to listen and purchase their music.
www.facebook.com/thedecoders

Nice & EZ (Itaimusik re-edit)

The Decoders

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