Steven Lopez

The soul babies of the postmodern era make music to satisfy all mankind with grandiose emotionalism and dramatic flair paired with hip clothing and shaggy hair that the children can relate to. One can trace the origin of the troubles back to New York City.

Children are raised on the street corners and basketball courts where their small, nascent hearts shychronize with the rhythms of hip-hop, dancehall, and R&B. On there way home, the children encounter local viejos engaged and ever so focused on their game of dominoes. Radio by their side, the old folks blast archaic salsa and meringue music. This too, is ingested. Children arrive home and greet their father and mother who are alternating in the DJ seat; one side of a King Crimson LP followed by a Wilson Pickett 45. Naturaly, as 80s babies they are assaulted by a burgeoning television phenomenon in the form of music television. They learn to love the tone of Moogs and Arps and DX7s from groups like New Order and David Bowie. They ingest all of this musical fodder and senior year of High School they start a band. The story that follows is common. What began as hobby becomes slightly more serious. In their third year, god graces them with opportunities to open for national acts such as The Wailers, Dialated Peoples, and Common. College Radio stations in New York and Boston show the soul babies love. They record a 12-song demonstration of music and sell a bit over 2000 copies purely on the strength of their live performance. Seminal hip hop DJ Bobbito describes their music as ‘bananas’. A&R people buy them lunch from time to time. The primary vocalist/songwriter of the band moves to Los Angeles to persue a post-secondary school level of education and assembles a more mature, finessed group of soul babies. The concept conceived during soul babies’ formative stages is realized; a group that has the musical wherewithal and balls to play any style of music authentically, and does so within a hip hop context. They’ve played a number of clubs, festivals and colleges and have, in several cases, brought people to tears. The band has erected a unique studio to facilitate their unique process. At present, they are in there working ceaselessly to complete their first honest musical statement in the form of an album. Warren Rikker (The Fugees, The Hope) and Dean Baltois (Agnostic Front, AFI) are in there with them.