Tony Brown

Some music deserves more ears. I’ve brought you a few such examples on this site over the past few months. From unreleased music from Nicola Bright-Thomas, to lost classics from Laura Yeger to bang up to date underground output from Sappho’s Journey. Finding new music – or at least music that’s new to me – is a genuine thrill. Through DJing, and pulling together the freethinking movement, some new music finds its way to me. A case in point: Tony Brown. His album recently found itself in my inbox. I’m glad it did.

I make a big noise about ‘blurring boundaries’, and throwing a mix of genres together. Seriously – I love hearing music where different influences are laid bare. The clash of something soft and tinged with folk rammed right up against hard electro funk can be a beautiful thing. While many artists may lay claim to their sound being informed by a breadth of influences, you can normally still pin it down. It’s still really funk, or really rock. With Tony Brown, I will genuinely say that there’s something a bit different going on. His album ‘The Black Art’ comes across as a mix of (bear with me here) ‘Neither Fish Nor Flesh’-era Terence Trent D’Arby, Robbie Robertson, D’Angelo and – most notably – The Invisible.

New music should be supported – especially when it’s music that’s doing something different. Tony Brown is following his own path – not just regurgitating the same torrid nonsense that bothers the charts. This isn’t music for the lowest common denominator – it’s music which has a heart, has a soul, and should be heard by more people.

Click here to listen to the track ‘Punk Saves The World’ by Tony Brown - thefreethinkingmovement.com

Western New Yorker Brown is a virtuoso musician and songwriter with interests ranging from soul, blues and classic rock to post-punk, R&B and garage rock. His eclecticism is both aggressive and purposeful throughout “The Black Art,” and is born out of what Brown describes as “frustration with the categorization of music” on the contemporary landscape. Brown met his sonic match in the form of Grammy-winning producer Malcolm Burn, who has worked with the likes of Patti Smith and the Neville Brothers. Jam band, soul and jazz veteran John Medeski performs on five of the album’s tracks. The result is an album that moves with grace and ease through whatever style Brown might feel like exploring. In lesser hands, this might come off as a bit scatter-shot and mish-mashy, but Brown and Burn are not lesser hands. - The Buffalo News

Western New Yorker Brown is a virtuoso musician and songwriter with interests ranging from soul, blues and classic rock to post-punk, R&B and garage rock. His eclecticism is both aggressive and purposeful throughout “The Black Art,” and is born out of what Brown describes as “frustration with the categorization of music” on the contemporary landscape. Brown met his sonic match in the form of Grammy-winning producer Malcolm Burn, who has worked with the likes of Patti Smith and the Neville Brothers. Jam band, soul and jazz veteran John Medeski performs on five of the album’s tracks. The result is an album that moves with grace and ease through whatever style Brown might feel like exploring. In lesser hands, this might come off as a bit scatter-shot and mish-mashy, but Brown and Burn are not lesser hands. - The Buffalo News

“….the tall, dark, dreadlocked and handsome man was here promoting his new CD, ‘The Black Art,’ which includes the undeniable cut ‘Punk Saves The World,’ which he dedicated to Joe Strummer, I’d seen Brown before with a full band, but this show was Brown backed by a lone electric guitar. In this setting his voice was inescapable, with its penetrating tone and urgent emotion. It was riveting to say the least.” – Frank De Blaise, City Newspaper 9/24/10 - City Newspaper

"Brown can really rattle a room with the the wailing, soulful, throaty force of Van Morrison or U2's Bono" - Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

"Brown towered over the stage with a voice that was a little more silvery than it is on record. The band grooved on its mid-tempo asphalt Americana and got a little gritty with Tom Waits' "Way Down In The Hole." - City Newspaper

"...The trained listener will immediately recognize the love for music and the craftsmanship as a songwriter that Tony Brown has put into this piece, and the promise for the musical future of this talented artist. "Music For A Shrinking World" with its thirty minutes while a short but very commendable record." - www.rootstime.be

Tony Brown makes a wonderful mishmash of musical sounds, like a cook that creates tasty casseroles out of almost any old collection of ingredients. Ah, but Chef Brown chooses only the best elements to make his dishes, as Music for A Shrinking World will most certainly expand any listener’s appreciation for what this man can do.

This seven-song CD opens with one called "Turnstiles," which tastefully utilizes both strings and acoustic guitar together. It contains a little Counting Crows here, a little Seal there, and a whole lot of Van Morrison almost everywhere. Like Morrison, Brown at first sounds to be wondering with no particular place to go. But such a perception is beautifully deceptive because Brown is always aiming to reach out and strike an emotional nerve, which he hits 99.9% of the time.

"Something To Die For" is a song that bluntly states Brown’s sincere passion for living, especially when he pleads, "Just give me something to die for." He longs for solid life goals, but these desires are sometimes inhibited by the brooding darkness of our modern world. Over a 70s soul sonic bed, which is further enriched by reggae undertones, he states: "It always feels like the blind leading the blind, tell me what you’re gonna do to ease my mind." But there's no immediate reply to this plea.

This CD’s best song is the epically tragic "Hellbound." It features the sort of pessimistic lyric that seemingly no traveling evangelist can counter. But it aims for the big fish, not the little ones. "All you presidents, all you CEOs come on down." And with the recent Wall Street troubles, this straight-to-hell path for CEOs seems all that more realistic. Who's not to say we're all hellbound, what with the housing market collapse?

Although Brown seems to be more familiar with darkness than light, he is also willing to sing about hope when he finds thin slivers of it. On one track titled "Alone," he holds out the promise of relational comfort by singing, "I won’t leave you alone." And while blues music is hinted at – especially lyrically – Brown doesn’t play too much that sounds like blues until the last song, "One Last Try," which sports a powerfully gruff vocal and a striking blues guitar solo.

Tony Brown is a unique talent, with a musical passion we haven’t heard since Seal. But Brown is sometimes even better than Seal because he doesn’t rely on complex studio trickery to sell his sentiments. Music for A Shrinking World comes directly from Tony Brown’s huge heart.

By Dan MacIntosh - Indie-Music.com

"...The trained listener will immediately recognize the love for music and the craftsmanship as a songwriter that Tony Brown has put into this piece, and the promise for the musical future of this talented artist. "Music For A Shrinking World" with its thirty minutes while a short but very commendable record." - www.rootstime.be

Organizer’s pick, Utica Music Festival, featured in the festival guide. Second of six bands featured out of the 242 bands that played the fest. “A less haunting and lamented version of a male Sade with heavier influences of rock…He already sounds like something big on the radio.� - Fusion Weekly (September 2008)

Brown’s soulful vocals are matched with passionate music, combining world, reggae and funk with alternative rock� Freetime (February 2008) - Freetime Magazine

Organizer’s pick, Utica Music Festival, featured in the festival guide. Second of six bands featured out of the 242 bands that played the fest. “A less haunting and lamented version of a male Sade with heavier influences of rock…He already sounds like something big on the radio.� - Fusion Weekly (September 2008)

You could call Tony Brown a soul singer, except his singing isn't encumbered by soul's stylistic histrionics. Don't get me wrong, I dig soul's drama, but it's nice to hear a singer of passion and depth let the song do its thing without bulldozing it with style and technique. Brown (formerly of Rochester's Ozone and now hanging his hat Boston) is a great singer whose voice spikes his band's rock music with beauty and dimension. It kind of reminds me of Roxy Music with its atmosphere and hints of elegance. There are too many elements to single out as they blend varied and cool on his latest, "Music For A Shrinking World." - City Newspaper

You could call Tony Brown a soul singer, except his singing isn't encumbered by soul's stylistic histrionics. Don't get me wrong, I dig soul's drama, but it's nice to hear a singer of passion and depth let the song do its thing without bulldozing it with style and technique. Brown (formerly of Rochester's Ozone and now hanging his hat Boston) is a great singer whose voice spikes his band's rock music with beauty and dimension. It kind of reminds me of Roxy Music with its atmosphere and hints of elegance. There are too many elements to single out as they blend varied and cool on his latest, "Music For A Shrinking World." - City Newspaper

Saturday, January 31

Swati w/Tony Brown & The Faithful

This Saturday (Jan. 31), Babeville will host an evening dedicated to two rising singer-songwriters with international flare. Swati, a NYC native who began her musical career in the classical world, plays a twelve-string guitar that has been fitted with eight. She sings and plays in a style that is gripping, percussive, honest, and contains hints of her Indian heritage. Tony Brown, a former member of upstate NY’s infamous Ozone, now tours with his band the Faithful, a gathering of experienced, eclectic musicians hailing from around the globe. Brown’s soulful, powerful voice, along with the acoustic world vibe that his band mates bring, creates a sound that mixes blues, folk, and alternative rock. Together, these two acts should produce a night packed with originality and talent.

—lindsay berman

8:30 pm. The Ninth Ward at Babeville, 341 Delaware Ave. (888-223-6000 / www.babevillebuffalo.com). $8 advance at box office, Tickets.com/$10 at door - Artvoice

Saturday, January 31

Swati w/Tony Brown & The Faithful

This Saturday (Jan. 31), Babeville will host an evening dedicated to two rising singer-songwriters with international flare. Swati, a NYC native who began her musical career in the classical world, plays a twelve-string guitar that has been fitted with eight. She sings and plays in a style that is gripping, percussive, honest, and contains hints of her Indian heritage. Tony Brown, a former member of upstate NY’s infamous Ozone, now tours with his band the Faithful, a gathering of experienced, eclectic musicians hailing from around the globe. Brown’s soulful, powerful voice, along with the acoustic world vibe that his band mates bring, creates a sound that mixes blues, folk, and alternative rock. Together, these two acts should produce a night packed with originality and talent.

—lindsay berman

8:30 pm. The Ninth Ward at Babeville, 341 Delaware Ave. (888-223-6000 / www.babevillebuffalo.com). $8 advance at box office, Tickets.com/$10 at door - Artvoice