julien kasper band
Boston, Massachusetts, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
Exquisite tones, masterful execution, and innate soulfulness drive this jazzy, funky, bluesy,
Sco-and-Beck-meet-Hendrix-for-drinks-at-the-Harvard-Psychedelic-Club instrumental joyride. - Guitar Player magazine, June 2010
Julien Kasper is a guitar virtuoso whose instrumental excursions find equal footing in both jazz and blues without being bound to either... Kasper wields a master’s touch even as he alternates between blazing workouts, sinewy grooves and introspective musings... - M Music & Musicians magazine, March/April 2010
While it’s hard to categorize what Kasper does, he’s certainly one of the most imaginative composers and players working with the guitar today. - Vintage Guitar magazine, April 2010
Kasper's playing is authoritative and adventurous. With forays into jazz phrasing and high-octane blues, his melodic attack combines equal parts of Jeff Beck and Hendrix channeled through monumental tone. - June 2006 Guitarist Magazine
Kasper can shred or slo-burn with the best of the strummers and pickers, and he’s one of the very few guitarists I’ve ever heard who has a line on Alan Holdsworth’s unique slurs. - Mark S. Tucker, April 2010
The Sound: Virtuoso jazzy blues rock guitar.
History: Berklee College of music instructor Julien Kasper is a seasoned guitarist who's gigged with many bluesmen, including Pat Ramsey and Mighty Sam McClain. On his sophomore album,The New Imperial, Kasper and his cohorts, drummer Zac Casher and bassist Blendi Dhami, gracefully cycle through rock, jazz, and blues, while always allowing their pieces to maintain a strong melodic center.
"Soul, groove, melody, tone, and the element of surprise are my priorities as a composer and an improviser," says Kasper. "As a guitarist I am coming equally from the schools of rock, jazz, and blues."
- Tune-ups & Profiles, October 2007
...the "groove" on this, the third release from eclectic guitarist and Berklee College of Music professor Julien Kasper, never stops. Kasper's grasp of dynamics and tone as well as his anything-goes approach is in the best tradition of Jeff Beck, while his affinity for the harmonic fringe calls to mind John Scofield. In the middle of funk rocker "Trash Day," Kasper cranks up the fuzz and goes all psychedelic on you, channeling an inner Jimi like few others can. Then, just when you're all toked up, he brings on the mellow with the beautiful acoustic ballad, "Abyssinia," showing yet another facet of his imaginative repertoire. - Guitar Edge magazine, June 2010
There are soaring runs reminiscent of Sixties' psychedelia, jazz-tinged riffs that would make Charlie Christian smile, and sonic rock swirls and techniques that any fan of Cream or The Yardbirds could relate to. That's why "Trance Groove" is such an enjoyable listen—there's something here
for all music fans to enjoy! - Sheryl & Don Crow, April 2010
"Wes Montgomery greatly complicated my life by hipping me to jazz," writes Julien Kasper. Way to go, Wes! Kasper's ballsy - yet - breathy tone (think Holdsworth, Frisell) is grafted onto lithe, elastic compositions that breath fusion fire through Texas teeth.
The eclectic [guitarist] suggests that "John Coltrane and Miles Davis have far more in common with Hendrix and Beck than most jazz guitarists." Building his style from that perspective, Kasper displays the kind of righteous control, dead-on phrasing, progressive composition, and savvy ears that make Eric Johnson's music so appealing... This guy is really, really good - somebody give him a record deal quick!
Guitar Player Magazine - Guitar Player Magazine
Discography
• Trance Groove, 2009, Toulcat Records (USA)
• The New Imperial, 2006, Nugene Records (England)
• Flipping Time, 2003, Toulcat Records (USA)
Trance Groove is already in rapidly spreading rotation. New Imperial and Flipping Time received extensive airplay in the US, Europe, and Australia. The New Imperial is in rotation on XM Satellite Radio's "Beyond Jazz."
Photos
Bio
BOSTON, MA – Toulcat Records announces an April 20 release date for Trance Groove, the new album from The Julien Kasper Band, led by eclectic guitar virtuoso Julien Kasper, with national distribution by City Hall Records. Along with bassist Jesse Williams and drummer Zac Casher, on Trance Groove Julien Kasper has fashioned an exhilarating album combining funky grooves, catchy melodies, psychedelic soundscapes, soulful blues, epic rock guitar and even a stunning acoustic ballad – all on one album. The CD also features a guest appearance on Hammond B3 organ by T Lavitz (Dixie Dregs, Widespread Panic, Jazz is Dead).
Trance Groove is the third CD from Boston-based Julien Kasper, who is also a professor at the legendary Berklee College of Music, and it reflects his intense melding of a number of diverse elements into a whole that becomes his own unique sound. “Soul, groove, melody, tone and the element of surprise are my priorities as a composer and an improviser… as a guitarist I am coming equally from the schools of rock, jazz and blues,” he told Guitar World in a feature published in 2007.
Kasper’s previous two albums, Flipping Time (2003) and The New Imperial (2006) announced the arrival to the music world of a major new guitar artist; and on his latest release Kasper ups the ante even further with his improvisational playing, soaring into the many worlds and sounds he creates with the guitar.
Born in France to American parents, he spent his youth as an Army child moving around the American south and got his first major guitar gig while living in Tallahassee. After a four-year stint in Austin, he enrolled in the University of Miami and later graduated from the jazz program at the school. He put himself through college playing with local Miami legends IKO IKO, the house band at Tobacco Road, Miami’s legendary roots music venue.
Kasper became first known to most international music fans through his work with acclaimed keyboardist Bruce Katz, with whom he recorded two CDs (Mississippi Moan and Three Feet off the Ground) and toured extensively in the U.S. and Europe. He also recorded two CDs with Mighty Sam McClain (Journey and Soul Survivor).
Since launching his solo career, Julien has received universal kudos for his guitar playing. “While it’s hard to categorize what Kasper does, he’s certainly one of the most imaginative composers and players working with the guitar today,” wrote Vintage Guitar in a review. And Guitarist magazine summed up its rave review by stating: “Kasper’s playing is authoritative and adventurous. With forays into jazz phrasing and high-octave blues, his melodic attack combines equal parts Jeff Beck and Hendrix channeled through monumental tone.”
Trance Groove is already generating considerable national and international airplay at Triple A and college radio stations, with radio promotion being handled by Rick Lusher (rickl1@ix.netcom.com).
For more information on The Julien Kasper Band, visit www.julienkasper.com and www.myspace.com/julienkasperband.
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