Re-Up
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Music
Press
http://www.boston.com/ae/events/articles/2009/03/26/on_the_up/
On the up
By Meredith Goldstein
Globe Staff / March 26, 2009
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The local, experimental-hip-hop act Re-Up is having a productive spring. The Berklee College of Music-trained group recently announced that it will open for Gym Class Heroes in May and that it's now working with George Massenburg, a Grammy-winning engineer who has helped Billy Joel, Journey, and James Taylor. To top it all off, Re-Up is playing a show on Saturday to celebrate a new album. Productive indeed. Re-Up plays Bill's Bar as part of a lineup that includes the Phix and Gonna Get Got. 8:30 p.m. $10, $12 day-of. Bill's Bar, 5 Lansdowne St. 617-421-9678
- The Boston Globe
Re-Up
2009 OCTOBER 11
by nextlevelkids
So these guys are from Boston and did a set at Sub-T and killed cool set of guys Cliff what up man! I need those Lobster’s; I’ll be in Boston soon…
http://nextlevelkidz.com/2009/10/11/re-up/
- nextlevelkidz.com
Boston got a little bit better tonight.
Seeing a not-so-old friend gave me an excuse to sneak out of the MIT Delt house, after a middling day of meetings and calls. The friend in question has changed a lot in four years (who hasn’t?) and I’m thrilled this job let me catch up with her after we both went through some changes.
Hallmark card prose will have to wait. I was also here to see the band she pumped up like so many fishpork reviews of yesteryear, and the impressive Myspace clips didn’t do it a shred of justice.
If the Hold Steady can complain “Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night,” than funk-hop outfit The Re-Up should write the polar opposite about the crowd at Cask and Flagon near Fenway Park. The guys know how to work a crowd, making us bounce like tennis balls in space.
With a Dylan-circa-1968 beard and a rope holding up his sagging pants, singer Cliff “Spliff” Kuhn-Lloyd sung in a reggae-fied croak falling somewhere on the earthy common ground between Mos Def and Citizen Cope. Meanwhile, guitarist Owen Ross ripped stinging arpeggios out of the air to puncture the warm, loping bass-n-sax vibe. The guys love climaxes more than the adult film industry, consistently pumping up the drums every few bars and sending the vocals up in a blaze of record scratches (DJs in rock bands are back in style, folks) and shit-hot saxophone. It’s like Steely Dan fronted by Bob Marley. No, it’s like The Roots as a funk band in 1976. That’s probably not right either. Whatever you call it, it’s undeniably insidious to anyone afraid of letting their feet slip in a rhythmic fashion. Simply put, this is the best black music made by white people since The Black Keys became Ohio’s hottest export. Cool and genre-bending, the dudes make forward-thinking acts like TV On The Radio look like Pat Boone. I knew about two song titles, other than the closing “Easy Baby,” where anyone who heard the title knew the words. “Bad Mother Fucker” wasn’t so much a teeth-baring challenge as a revelatory celebration of confidence set to stun. One particularly groovy cut sounded like a mashup of Curtis Mayfield’s “Pusherman” and Mary J. Blige’s “Family Affair.” But as influences weaved their way in and out of the music, Cliff and crew held tight to their brand of bold let’s-get-fucked-up-and-ball music.
If this band isn’t big within a year, I’ll quit writing.
http://foulthink.wordpress.com/2009/09/11/boston-re-upped/#comment-23
- A Smattering of Soul blog
Re-Up’s Fridays @ 5 Performance
21 SEPTEMBER 2009 BY LISA KONG
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much when Re-Up first walked onto the Sadler Center Terrace stage set up for AMP’s free “Fridays @ 5” event on Sept. 18. Dressed in baggy t-shirts and baseball caps, they hardly looked like the “hip-hop/experimental” group advertised on the band’s myspace.
But then the music started. And I fell in love.
Cliff “Spliff” Kuhn-Lloyd’s vocals had me immediately hooked, with a magnificent whiskey voice that sent chills down my spine. The band presented a surprisingly sophisticated blend of hard-hitting rap and soulful jazz, with an unbeatable combination of great lyrics and a laid-back attitude onstage.
Each player of the eight-member band was highlighted at one point in the performance, from guitar solos to great riffs from the trumpet and saxophone duo.
Re-Up was booked for the event’s usual two-hour time slot, which was perhaps overambitious for just one band. The band even remarked that they’d have to “stretch” a few songs to fill the two-hours, and transitions between songs slowly became a matter of Kuhn-Lloyd asking the crowd how much time was left in their set.
The unsigned band from Boston, Massachusetts stopped to play at William & Mary before kicking off their Midwest tour. Check out their MySpace for songs and more info about the band.
http://vinyltap.org/2009/09/21/re-ups-fridays-5-performance/ - vinyltap.org
Berklee College of Music's student-run label, Heavy Rotation Records (HRR), is proud to present the first concert at the brand-new House of Blues Boston on Tuesday, February 17. The Heavy Rotation Records House Party at the House of Blues is FREE and all-ages.
The bash celebrates the opening of the new club at the site of the former Axis and Avalon nightclubs, and will feature artists that have appeared on HRR releases past and present.
Performers include Boston Music Award-winners and Berklee alumni Kid:Nap:Kin, who appeared on HRR's Dorm Sessions Volume 4; Re-Up, an eight-piece student and alumni hip-hop band featured on the label's new compilation CD, Dorm Sessions 6; and Sex!, a student and alumni band mixing rock, blues, r&b, and soul, which is also included on HRR's new release.
http://www.berklee.edu/news/492/heavy-rotation-records-house-party-at-the-house
- Berklee
Discography
Previous Recordings:
6 Song Demo/PressKit 2008
Visit MySpace.com/ReUpBand to listen!
In the Works:
Session in June at world famous Avatar Studios, NY
Full Album Release coming 2010
Photos
Bio
“Boston Hip-Hop and soul doesn’t get nearly enough love, but it’s probably because there aren’t enough bands like RE-UP.”
– The Boston Weekly Dig
“One of the most promising new bands from Boston!”
- The Boston Globe
“If you're a fan of The Roots, then these guys are right up your alley…lookin' forward to more of what these Bostonians have to offer as they continue to release new music and tour the country! Enjoy!”
– Gowhere Hip-Hop
“Re-Up [plays] laid back, infectious grooves that’ll get any party started. And with 8 members in the band, all jamming and interacting seamlessly with one another, that’s exactly what their set was – one big party.”
– Brad Holmes, From The Field (Sonicbids Blog)
“Re-Up killed their set at The Subterranean (Chicago.) Amazing music!”
– Nextlevelkidz.com
“The guys know how to work a crowd, making us bounce like tennis balls in space...If this band isn’t big within a year, I’ll quit writing.”
– Smattering of Soul Blog
“Cliff “Spliff” Kuhn-Lloyd’s vocals had me immediately hooked, with a magnificent whiskey voice that sent chills down my spine… the music started. And I fell in love.”
– Vinyltap.org (College of William & Mary)
"Enticing blend of experimental hip hop meets guitar, trumpet, alto sax, and bass..... Let's get funky y'all!"
- Real Detroit Weekly
"Nothing to say about Re-Up except that they’re way ahead of us!"
- George Massenburg
"It's very rare that I see a young band with such a unique voice."
- Captain Kirk (The Roots)
I Love It!"
- Linda Ronstadt
Re-Up has proven to be a truly unique voice in the music world. Playing together since 2007, the members of Re-Up united while attending the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA. There, they were quickly drafted by Berklee's student run record label Heavy Rotation Records. Many high profile visiting artists became fast fans including George Massenburg, Andrew Dawson, Don Waas, and Linda Ronstadt Before long the band had gained a strong following in the Boston and New England area and were packing clubs like The Middle East and Harpers Ferry. In 2008 Re-Up hit the road and didn't look back. Since then they’ve been playing clubs, colleges and festivals across the US. Re-Up has performed alongside acts including The Roots, Big Boi (of Outkast), Gym Class Heroes, Strangefolk, The Ryan Montbleau Band and more.
This 8 piece band includes a horn section, DJ, electric guitar and is fronted by a tantalizing vocalist that goes by the name of Spliff. Spliff, has been compared to Citizen Cope, Spearhead, Eminem, James Brown and Tom Waits, but no one can fully categorize the MC's unique voice and presence. The band's influences range from old school soul to hip-hop, jazz to rock and beyond, but the music Re-Up creates is a style all their own.
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