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Whadeva (Live at Dangerous Art Studios February 13, 2020)
Billie Davies
Label: Self Produced
Released: 2020
Duration: 00:31:25
Views: 2,037
Tracks
Whadeva the Cobra; Whadeva 2; Whadeva 3; Whadeva 4; Whadeva 5; Whadeva 6.
Personnel
Additional Personnel / Information
Billie Davies: electronic drums; Damani Butler: samples, waves, beats, loops; Maude Caillat: alto sax, flute;
Album Description
Whadeva
It had not reached New Orleans yet, or so they
thought.
They had been prepping these recordings since late
December, early January. Damani Butler contacted
Billie
Davies and Maude Caillat asking them whether
they would be interested in doing a project with
him. He also
mentioned he had contacted female artists for this
project. Both Billie Davies, an american drummer
from
California who moved to New Orleans 6 years ago
and Maude Caillat, a sax player from Switzerland,
who was
currently playing and residing in New Orleans.
Damani had rented a house in the Lower Ninth
Ward, which
became Dangerous Art Studios, and was busy
transforming it into the whole house and whatever
sounds in it,
showed in it and whomever entered it, being part of
a work of art he was creating.
The project would be experimental, completely
improvisational audio art. Intuitive, instinctive in
nature Damani
would be doing his electronic loops, beats and
waves while Caillat and Davies played whatever
they played.
Billie decided to use her electronic drumset and
Maude would bring her sax and flute to the project.
Mike
Davies would be recording the project, and be
responsible for mixing and mastering the music that
was
recorded live on 02/13/2020 for a later unedited
release of what was played that evening.
This was definitely so very much a Billie Davies
project, always wanting to create, no preconceived
ideas for
the music, no notes written, no words written, no
concept conceived but what you’re surrounded by,
play what
you feel at this moment, express your feelings as
the now keeps moving forward in the now,
whatever
happens, a direct connection from the brain to the
sound, whatever comes up, whatever makes you
move in
whatever direction.
Damani Butler was in his room, surrounded by a
hundred pieces of all kinds of audio equipment,
from
keyboards to synthesizers, to percussion, to
whatever.
Maude Caillat was in her room, with her
woodwinds and a microphone to record it
surrounded by several
pieces of Damani’s electronic art.
Billie Davies was in her room, her electronic drums
that can produce what she calls whatever a drum or
percussion sound with sometimes even an organ or
bass or guitar sound, and a light show for the mood.
All the rooms throughout the house had serious
wattage stereo speakers so everyone would hear
what
everyone else played and wherever the people that
attended the recording were they could hear all of it
come
through speakers.
Several people showed up, gathering in the kitchen
where there was wine, beer, whiskey and coffee
and
whatever they brought.
All the music for "Whadeva" was recorded during
the Coronavirus outbreak with a final recording date
of
February 13. It had not reached New Orleans yet, or
so we thought, with mardi-gras slowly but surely
going
into full swing. All we knew was what we heard
and read and saw, which then made me think... and
we all got
sick with some type of flu. A month later we were
all on lockdown and now it is time to let go, to let
this music
go.
Genre: Nu Jazz; Avant-garde Jazz; Audio Art;
Experimental
Release date: July 24, 2020
A Damani Butler project.
Recorded live at Dangerous Art Studios on
02/13/2020 in New Orleans.
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Mike Davies at
Cobra Basement.
Produced by Mike and Billie Davies at Cobra
Basement.
Copyright 2020, Damani Butler, Maude Caillat,
Billie Davies, Mike Davies.
The Musicians
Damani Butler
Electronics, loops, beats, waves, samples.
Damani is an experimental, multi/mixed media
artist, lyricist and music producer from Oakland,
California now
living in New Orleans, Louisiana, specializing in
interactive audio, visual and physical object art with
a focus on
up-cycled electronics and unique furniture.
He has spent the last 25 + years informally training
and educating himself in all areas of creative and
technical
interest, developing and evolving his skill-set by
way of volunteering for skilled professionals in
exchange for
knowledge and guidance, watching instructional
videos, attending workshops and training programs,
reading
and studying books, manuals, instructions and other
literature on all subjects relative, watching and
asking
questions as well as good, old fashioned DIY
practice, trial and error. He has independently
completed a
library of works in the fields of art, experimental
music and lyricism often combining the three as he
feels.
His accomplishments include
Audio productions in the genres of underground hip
hop, experimental electronic music, audio art, sound
experimentation projects and even coining and
naming his own genre, "Crack Rock".
Short and medium length video productions in the
categories of music video, installation and project
documentation/presentation, video art and he’s
presently working on a documentary called
"Adventures in Art
and Music"
Maude Caillat
Woodwinds, alto sax, flute
Maude Caillat grew up in Switzerland where her
dad taught her to read music and play wood flute
transmitting
his passion for music to her when she was 5 years
old.
At 18, the call for different sonorities and rhythms
became so strong that she decided to take a
backpack and
her saxophone in the direction of Senegal. After 6
years living in Dakar she developed a special
sensibility and
true love for traditional Senegalese and Mandingo
music playing with pretty much everybody in town.
In 2010 Maude was part of the band who won the
RFI award for the best emerging African band. After
a 3
month tour around Africa, Maude, her backpack and
her saxophone ended up in Paris. While playing and
recording there with several African musicians
based in France, it's with Tarace Boulba, a gigantic
funk and
Gogo brass band touring all around Europe and the
USA, that Maude discovered the music and the
culture
from New Orleans. After 6 years in France, once
again the call of the “riddim” became too strong and
she
decided to take a plane to Louisiana. In New
Orleans, Maude formed 2 bands, The Afrodiziac's
Jazz (Ethiopian
Jazz ) and SingleMaltPlease (hip hop jazz). She had
the chance to collaborate with a lot of extremely
talented
local musicians and even played 2 times at the Jazz
Fest with Seguenon Kone, a master percussionist
and
choreographer from the Ivory Coast. Through the
years she discovered a huge interest in playing free
jazz,
experimental and improvisational music, an interest
which grew more and more and brought her to
meet Billie
Davies who's the perfect "partner in crime" with her
magic influences and rhythms to make it sound
whatever...
Whadeva ...
Billie Davies
Electronic drums
Billie Davies is an American, self-taught, natural,
drummer and composer best known for her free,
instinctively
avant-garde compositions since the mid nineties,
and her improvisational drumming techniques she
has
performed in Europe and in the US. All of her music
is improvisational ... a conversation between
musicians
and musical instruments, a joint emotional
expression inspired by a certain feeling, thought or
perspective that
is being communicated to an audience, a listener, a
community.
Billie Davies was born in Brugge, Belgium. She
played and performed all over Europe until
immigrating to the
United States at 32 and becoming a US citizen
while living in California.
While living and playing in the South of France, in
Perpignan, Montpellier, Toulouse and Biarritz, in the
early
1980's, Billie received a talent grant from Max
Roach to study at Berklee College of Music.
While living in Hollywood on the infamous
Hollywood Boulevard in 2013, Billie Davies
received the "Jazz Artist
of the Year" Award by the 23rd Annual Los Angeles
Music Awards.
In March of 2014, after 25 years in California where
she released 2 albums, in 2012 “ all about Love. ”
and in
2013 “ 12 VOLT ”, she moved to New Orleans
where she has graced stages ever since and in
2015 she
released “ Hand In Hand In The Hand Of The Moon
”, after a while she formed a solid foundation line-
up with
Evan Oberla and Oliver Watkinson and released 2
albums with them, in 2016 “ On Hollywood
Boulevard ” and in
2018 “ Perspectives II ”. She received more
attention due to a player feature in Downbeat
Magazine May 2016
edition, "BILLIE DAVIES '20 Years Stronger'". " On
Hollywood Boulevard ", the album she released on
12/10/2016, became a January 2017 Editor's Pick
on DownBeat.com.
December 2017 Billie Davies was nominated for
"Best Contemporary Jazz Artist" in New Orleans by
2017 Best
Of The Beat Awards.
December 2019 Billie Davies was nominated "Best
Drummer" in New Orleans by 2019 Best Of The
Beat
Awards.
Review
- Whadeva (Live at Dangerous Art Studios February 13, 2020) by Geno Thackara
Album uploaded by Billie Davies PR