Dapp Theory
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Dapp Theory

New York City, New York, United States | INDIE

New York City, New York, United States | INDIE
Band Jazz Spoken Word

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"Layers of Chance Review"

Dapp Theory stands at the meeting point of lyrical jazz piano, funkified polyrhythmic exploration, and spoken word poeticism. In other words, fasten your seatbelts - you're in for a memorable trip.
Pianist, composer, and Dapp leader Andy Milne cut his teeth
with groundbreaking artists like saxophonists Steve Coleman and Greg Osby, so it's no surprise that his solo offerings venture
into territory far from everyday fare. On Layers of Chance, Milne creates an amalgam of seemingly opposite sonorities: shimmering
synth textures collide with rhythmic raprtied rhyming on "Bodybag For Martin," while "After The Fact" features New
Orleans style stop-march drumming and Milne's Herbie Hancock-meets-Lyle Mays piano work. Milne is the real deal, a visionary artist continually on the prowl for new stories to tell. Layers of Chance is a ride
you won't soon forget. (Jon Regen) - Keyboard Magazine


"Layers of Chance Review"

The band’s first album since its 2003 Concord Records release looms as a stylistic crossover among M-Base, hip-hop, progressive jazz, funk and more. To that end, I missed out on the group’s inaugural outing. However, keyboardist Andy Milne and saxophonist Loren Stillman are among the preeminent movers and shakers within modern jazz circles. In effect, they conjure up an overall tone of newness whether performing as solo artists, or accompanying others. Such is the case here, as the quintet designs a multi-genre gait that yields high dividends, largely due to its penchant for crafting a distinct sound. Admittedly, I’m not a huge fan of rap, but on several cuts John Moon provides what he calls, “percussive poetry.” Think rap-lite here, and the good news is that Moon’s orations seldom become overbearing. He doesn’t override, complements the rather hip musical plane, which is a potpourri of New Orleans shuffle beats, quirky flows, and funk-driven pulses, steered by Milne and Stillman’s sinuous phrasings and melodic textures. With tight rhythms and mood evoking themes, the quintet seamlessly integrates a buoyant vibe into the grand schema. It’s partly about the “groove” amid Milne’s occasional jazz-fusion type forays via his subtle synth generated lines. Moreover, the soloists’ fluid line of attack atop Christopher Tordini’s pumping bass lines instill a sense of continual motion into the preponderance of these eleven works. Ultimately, the band should garner wide appeal, to include the younger generation along with well-versed aficionados who appreciate the ever-evolving state of jazz music. – Glenn Astarita - EJazz News.Com


"Layers of Chance Review"

The Dapp's back!
After a five years hiatus since the brilliant Y'all Just Don't Know (Concord, 2003), Dapp Theory returns with yet another stellar recording in Layers Of Chance. Anchored by ex-Steve Coleman acolyte Andy Milne and drum wiz Sean Rickman, the quintet now sports a few new faces in bassist Christopher Tordini, reedman Loren Stillman and percussive poet John Moon, the latter joining after Kokayi's unfortunate departure. 24-year old Kenny Grohowski tolls the troops on the road in lieu of Rickman. Of course, as Kokayi's charismatic presence goes hardly unnoticed, Moon's diametrically different approach to MC'ing truly shines here. In fact, it veers the band into an emotionally deeper tangent previous line-ups had not ventured into. For example, whereas Kokayi scored big with spectacular, machine gun performances like “Bermuda Triangle” and witty social critiques like “Trickle Down” and “Bad Air,” Moon engages in less gung-ho, more sensitive exchanges, docilely drawing one into his words instead of spewing flamboyant and dashingly lashed out diatribes. Such is the case in “Blackout,” in which he cleverly plays with lexical fields pertaining to vision and perception. His tense, indecisive vocals places the narrator--a desperately lost, blinded soul searching to, in sum, “see through” the complexities and limitations of social interaction--in an emotive, insecurity-building spiral/revolving door, an effect also imparted to the captive listener. That said, fans will still find the band's grabbing, MBase-fueled grooves in “After The Fact,” with its perky piano/soprano sax interlude, as well as in the ostinato-driven “SOS,” and “Deja Vu,” a road-tested piece that encapsulates the group's musical spirit.

A multi-section composition, the track journeys back and forth (enhancing the feeling of deja vu the tune's text recounts) through diversely enthralling textural layers and atmospheres that Tordini's burly bass, Milne's spatial keyboards pads and Rickman's ricocheting, jerky beats create through colloquial interaction. The acute rhythmic sensitivity the players display in the manner they phrase this music, as well as the infatuating, offbeat thrust that results above which Milne's oblique, razor sharp motives, zigzag, has one ask rather humbly; “how in God's name do they do that?” Augmented by two guests female vocalists brought in to harmonize entrancing, 3-against-4 polyrhythmic rounds above its minimalist theme and accompanying 16th note pattern, the title track's patchwork-like, collaged density dissipates to make room for a surprise, thinner-sounding piano/sax interlude, as well as for Moon and Stillman's solos, the latter in a relaxed yet rather inspired one. As a matter of fact, Stillman's elastic time feel adds another, welcomed dimension to the music's rhythmic flow. If the strength of the performances herein is a token of what audiences can expect on upcoming live dates, than expect to be mesmerized and spend one exciting evening.
- All About Jazz.Com


Discography

"Layers of Chance" - Dapp Theory [ObliqSound/Contrology - 2008]
"Y'all Just Don't Know" - Dapp Theory [Concord Records - 2003]
"New Age of Aquarius" - Cosmic Dapp Theory [Contrology Records - 1999]

All 3 releases have (and continue to) receive airplay on college and satellite radio.

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Bio

Dapp Theory is a quintet that blends “contemporary funk, groove and hip-hop into jazz with such seamless, casual precision it’s almost freaky.” (LA Weekly)

A recipient of The Civitella Fellowship, Chamber Music America’s New Works commission, French-America Jazz Exchange award, and voted “Rising Star Keyboardist” by Down Beat Magazine, leader, pianist/composer, Andy Milne is one of the most important and respected voices in jazz today. With Dapp Theory, he is re-drawing and extend the boundaries of jazz. Jazz Times Magazine describes the band’s “remarkable chemistry . . . [as] . . . so impeccable, it’s practically a musical Unified Field Theory”.

Milne formed the band in 1998 as a vehicle to “tell passionate stories, promote peace and inspire collective responsibility towards uplifting the human spiritual condition.” Since then, the band has evolved and built a loyal following, in large part due to their commitment to grass-roots touring. Dapp Theory’s style is indefinable yet highly recognizable, blending influences ranging from Joni Mitchell and KRS One to Thelonious Monk and Van Halen. Their first major label CD, Y’all Just Don’t Know [Concord Records], released in 2003 included an ambitious collaboration with folk-rock icon Bruce Cockburn. Their current release, Layers of Chance [ObliqSound/Contrology], released in 2008, features fresh compositions by Milne that blend various instrumental textures, infectious grooves, layered with lush harmonies and poignant lyrics.