Orgone

"Sounding much like a cross between The Dap-Kings and Breakestra (with whom they share several members), L.A.’s Orgone keeps the hotness of the recent retro-soul revival coming; lead singer Fanny Franklin fits in very nicely between Sharon Jones and Amy Winehouse. As befits the band’s name, Orgone’s sound is quite organic, rooted in soul, funk, boogaloo, and jazz, with a classic appeal that’s nevertheless contemporary...the entire album is one non-stop groove. If smooth, soulful funk with jazzy arrangements makes you sweat, you just found your new favorite band." - XLR8R

"By the time the listener gets to the nasty, distorted, finger-popping, ass waggling "Crabby Ali" -- where the deep brewed, second-line New Orleans old-school funk goes head to head with the gloss of L.A.'s Tower of Power styled horn charts -- it feels like the party's just getting started." - All Music

"Their music is terrifically unfussy, big slabs of grizzled R&B, greasy as fatback and thick as a very particular kind of smoke. At their best, they recall the majesty of Sly & the Family Stone; opening track "Who Knows Who" is all bleary horns and broken-heart vocals, "It's What You Do" is a tight, itchy jam. There's still a riot goin' on, and Orgone is at the front of the crowd." - eMusic.com

"Orgone recalls acts like Fela Kuti, Trouble Funk, and War, but with a heavy dose of disco, as on Killion's "Dialed Up," where the deep groove and diva vocals are so authentic, they could be samples." - The Onion / A.V. Club

"It’s easy to imagine The Killion Floor both igniting mass partying and stoking libidos for more intimate gatherings." - OC Weekly

"Joining Alicia Keys on "Teenage Love Affair" and "Wreckless Love" on her recent #1 debut, Ubiquity Recordings act Orgone are the latest in a run of indie soul and funk bands to be tapped by a major label artist for music with a slap of authenticity and soulful grit. The El Michels Affair are featured on new tracks by Jay Z while The Daptone horns are responsible for some of the irresistible horns on the Mark Ronson-produced Amy Winehouse album.

Orgone are no strangers to working with superstars, the Los-Angeles-based band's reputation amongst the funk and soul fraternity is backed-up by an impressive and quickly growing resume that is expanding their reach. This includes landing a spot in an Adidas campaign, touring with major-label MC Lil' Brother, and going out as backing band for The Pharcyde, Plantlife (including a BBC performance for Jools Holland), Tone Loc and New Orleans funk legend Eddie Bo at the Hurricane Katrina benefit. Members of Orgone also feature in the make-up of Ubiquity acts Connie Price and Breakestra, and perform regularly at the Root Down in LA."
- NowOnTour.com

"A monstrous debut from one of the heaviest acts we've heard in years -- LA's Orgone, easily one of the most up-and-coming funky combos around! Although Orgone share a bit with some of the leaner deep funk groups who've cropped up in the past decade or so, they've also got a sound that's a bit more advanced overall -- sort of that second-generation approach to funk that hit the scene by the mid 70s, as some of the bigger funk acts like Black Heat or War moved out of the indie scene and really started to hit a wider audience! That doesn't mean that Orgone's commercial at all -- because they've got a sound that's still as sharp-edged as any smaller group -- but with a lineup that's quite large, they're able to encompass a very wide range of soulful styles -- gritty 45 riffing, slinky Chicano-styled grooves, Afro Funk, tighter soul tracks, and lots lots more -- all carried off with perfection throughout. The album feels like some lost masterpiece on Fantasy, or possibly some overlooked early 70s major label funk set on WEA or United Artists -- and titles include "Who Knows Who", "I Get Lifted", "Funky Nassau", "Lone Ranger", "Prism Break", "Crabby Ali", "Duck & Cover", "Dialed Up", "Said & Done", "Hambone", "It's What You Do", "Do Your Thing", and "Sophisticated Honky". - DustyGroove.com

"If there's something/ANYthing that you've liked in funk, soul or hip-hop during the last four decades, you'll find something you like on The Killion Floor, the first full-length release from this LA-based funk hip-hop ensemble. This is Orgone's rhythm and blues encyclopedia, an expansive (17 songs, 76 minutes) funk survey refracted through the hip-hop perspective that routinely loops and edits together musical pastiche—except that Orgone is a funk band that plays and sings it all live and hot on the spot. Samples or loops not included.
These first four tracks combine into a suite that honors the greatest little southern soul label that could, Stax Records: You wade in the water through the introductory “Easin,'” a languid, Booker T. meets Pucho Brown organ/conga groove, then singer Fanny Franklin gives voice to every woman whose good love turned sour in the mouth of her lover in “Who Knows Who?” Five minutes of instrumental black magic, “Sophisticated Honky” stings with its sharply barbed rhythm guitar hook, and shines like a lost Stax/Volt diamond. Then Franklin fires up and smokes a genuine Stax hit single, Isaac Hayes' liberation manifesto “Do Your Thing.”

And there's just so much more to love: “Hambone” throbs under the canopy of sweeping synthesizers, wriggling toward more experimental, electronic funk directions explored by Mandrill. “Dialed Up” drives you deep into the dance floor, with a bass/drum breakdown that sounds tres chic.

The reggae backbone of “Justice League” sets up the subsequent cover of “Funky Nassau” where, upon Franklin's cue (”Listen to the bassman, gonna make you move your feet”), the bassist rips into the torrid bassline from “Give It Up (Or Turnit Loose).” “Said and Done” resurrects the neo-soul vibe of the late, lamented Brand New Heavies. “Crabby Ali” pulls out yet another thread from this broad funk tapestry, the tubby New Orleans rhythms of The Meters or Neville Brothers.

Like fine sausage ravioli, The Killion Floor comes hot, saucy and overstuffed with meaty goodness. “We draw from a wider musical and production palette than a lot of '60s inspired music that's making a resurgence,” suggests drummer Sean O'Shea. “It's not intentional; it's simply a reflection of the music and production aesthetics that we love.” - AllAboutJazz.com

"One of the most ironic consequences of technology has been the reversion to vintage. Artists like Amy Winehouse and Sharon Jones seek out crinkly, dusty R&B/soul, much like Wu-Tang and other hip-hoppers tinkered with in the past. California is a current hotbed, and LA-based Orgone mingles Afrobeat with their muddy — yet, damn clean — funk and soul. Hijacking former Dakah hip-hop orchestra frontwoman Fanny Franklin was a smart move — she rivals Jones in intensity and demeanor. “Do Your Thing” is a lush, creeping throwback to some serious Aretha. Every note she touches drips with sensuality — even when the beat heats up, as with “Who Knows Who.” In the various instrumentals, the supporting players shine in their varied and dexterous roles. If Fela released on Motown, you would have had Orgone. Good thing we have them now." - commonground.com

"10-piece Cali funk outfit Orgone came out of left field a few years back with a blazing cover of "Funky Nassau(1)," and they haven't let up since. Their pair of singles on Ubiquity - "I Get Lifted(2)" and "Duck & Cover(3)" - are tough to keep in stock here at das Lab, so it appears you guys are already up on their tight, soulful sound. All I have to say is... this full length does not disappoint. Including those already-tested covers, plus a sultry female vocal'd version of Isaac Hayes' "Do Your Thing(4)," the Orgone guys (and gal) show a reverence for the 70s grooves that directly influence their sound. But the dozen or so original compositions here speak even more loudly toward their skills: the elastic AM soul of "It's What You Do(5)" and extended space synth jam "Hambone(6)" seem to say Orgone aren't just funk revivalists, but gifted songwriters born in the wrong decade. Very impressive stuff. " - turntablelab.com