Ziggy Zeitgeist is the front man for Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange, the future jazz ensemble that are causing a stir on the Berlin live scene. This week ZFEX release ‘Kreuzberg Kix EP2’ on London label Secretsundaze. We catch up with Ziggy and talk to him about his past, his inspirations, and WAYNE SNOW.

INTERVIEW

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Thanks for talking to us. Where are you this moment and how are you spending you day?
Hey, I’m just catching up on emails from my flat in Berlin . Hola!

Have you been performing this weekend? Where were you at? How was the night?
Yea we did a show in Istanbul on the weekend, it was my first time in the city and it was inspiring to visit a newly opened venue out there with some really hip music curation.

Where were you born Ziggy? Can you paint a brief picture of where you grew up?
I grew up in a small scientific community in Antarctica, my father was working there doing experiments with Apes under extreme weather conditions.

What was going on musically where you grew up, was there a scene?
Yea there was a really progressive future jazz scene in Antarctica.

What was your first step into music?
My father also happened to have a diverse record collection and played the drums with a few local bands, so it was very natural.

When did you get your first set of drums?
Well yea my pop always had a kit around the house, and I guess when I was teenager I bought my own kit from a garage sale so I could set them up in my room.

What kind of sounds were you into in your teens?
Hmmmm. I guess it was a period of expanding from the usual teenage 90’s / 00’s sounds of heavy metal/ Alt rock and Hip-Hop into some deeper stuff like jazz fusion and modern art music. But also, really digging a bit more into the kind of records that were sampled in hip-hop of course like soul music / Motown etc.

What was the first record you ever bought/ invested in?

N.W.A Straight Outta Compton – changed everything forever.

How did you discover your music when you were growing up?
Sounds old skool now, but back in the day you would save your pennies to buy the CD. I guess just through friends, older kids who were into more hip stuff like Prince and stuff like that u know. If u was cool they would lend u an earphone from their Discman.
Was radio important to you?
Honestly, where i grew up was so remote we didn’t really have radio until I moved into the city as a teenager, and then of course, I was checking out local community radio stations that were playing electronic and art music. Stations like PBS and RRR in Melbourne serve as the backbone of the scene in many ways.
Now it’s one of my main sources of inspiration. I tune into NTS or the LOT or WWFM every day.

Who are the artists from the past who have impacted the music that you make today?
Too many to name… Prince, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Fela Kuti, Bob Marley, Nina Simone, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jorge Ben, Billy Holiday, Charlie Parker, Tupac Shakur, and Jimi Hendrix. These are the true greats and should be used as a starting point for discovery.

What was the first band you were involved in?
Hmmmm it was an Antarctic nu-metal band that you’ve definitely never heard of.

What lead you to hook up with 30/70? Are you still part of the collective? How does that run with you being in Europe?
Yea, it’s fam. We drink from the same cup so it doesn’t make any difference if there are oceans between us. When we’re in the room together making music it’s an effortless and sacred experience. We transcend borders.

Why is there so much great music coming out of Melbourne? What is in the water?
Yea. It’s laced with LSD. You didn’t hear about that ?

What other new acts from Melbourne should we check?
Mandarin Dreams Collective, Danika Smith, Komang, Elle Shimad, La Sape Records, Love Above Records, Wax Museum, and Northside Records.

What lead to your move to Berlin?
Eventually, I was more interested in exploring a more sex-positive/ queer space to dance and play music. That’s why I’m in Berlin. It’s generally a bit more open-minded like that.

Who did you hook up with when you first got there?
Yea, I was linking up with people like Wayne Snow, Abase, S.Fidelity, Moses Yoofee, Ingwa, Stella Zekri. These were the selectors and artists bringing a fresh energy to the city.

Historically a city of machine music & techno. But there’s a huge new jazz there scene there right?
Yea, well it’s coming up for sure . Yea, I mean as you know the last 30 years there’s been a lot of amazing DJ’s and electronic music producers gravitate towards the city. There’s also been a strong underground scene of punk and experimental music for many years. That kind of anarchism is in a way the heart of the city and it permeates through all genres of music. So we’re just really tapping into that with the experience of the scene we’ve been involved with in Melbourne and London.

Who are the great drummers over time that you look up to?
Ivan Conti, Idris Muhammed, James Gadson, Tony Allen, Clyde Stubblefield, Paul Motian, Airto Moriera.

What does it take to be a great drummer in your opinion?
Spirit. Energy . Focus. Humility

When did the Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange form and what was the catalyst for its formation?
It came out of the necessity to create more of a curated jam session in the sense it was never a strict line-up of musicians but always changing cause that’s just how we got by. We had to play every night of the week back then and we would call whoever was available, so we’re not precious about the members in that way like a rock band or something. We focused on live music for the dance floor as opposed to self-indulgent jazz or the cold rigidity of electronic music. I love both of those things, but we slip between the cracks.

Who are the members of ZFEX?

The OG Melbourne band is: Lewis Moody, Matthew Hayes, Javier Fredes, Erica Tucceri, Finn Rees, Rodolfo Panga

The Berlin Band is: Eric Owusu, Aduni Geldes, Szabolcs Bognar, Roman Klobe Baranga.

What words would you use to describe the vibe of ZFEX?
Energy Exchange is a gathering for progressive, moving, loving and creating.

What has been your most notable release to date? What release has had the biggest impact for you?
We released a track this year on Blue Note. That was a big bonus for us being such a hugely influential label of course we were gassed.

How did you hook up with Secretsundaze?
The guys are legends, James Priestly came down to a show of ours in London and introduced himself afterwards. Later that night they took us out to the Horse Meat Disco, a legendary queer disco night in the city.

Kreuzberg used to be one of the poorest areas of West Berlin. What does Kreuzberg mean to you?
Creative innovation always emerges from the outskirts of cultural city centres, that is somewhere between gentrification and the working-class immigrant neighbourhoods, exists opportunity.

When I first arrived in Berlin, Kreuzberg was such an area. Not so much anymore, sadly it’s quite gentrified now and most of the artists in the city have moved further outside of the ring, Neukölln, Wedding etc.

On this second edition of the EP you have the incredible Wayne Snow . How did get Wayne come to be involved?
He was one of the first musicians I met and connected with in the city. I have a huge amount of respect for him as an artist, visionary and I’m grateful for him sharing his creativity to this project.

Chicago heavyweight Jenifa Mayanja remixes the title cut. You gotta be thrilled with her rework, right?
Yea, it’s a banger. We’re gassed .

What other projects are you working on that you can share?
I’m working on some experimental electronic music with an amazing drummer from Ghana. I’m working on a Neapolitan disco record with a crew in Naples, Italy. I’m working on a load of new music for the 30/70 collective. I’m working on myself and my relationships. I’m working on my visual arts ……… the list goes on.

When you’re not in the studio or with your drums what do you do to kick back?
Stay in bed with my girl, smoke weed, u know normal stuff I guess lols.

Tell us something we would never know about you?
Um…. I’m a vegan. Did u know that ?

Good luck with this dynamite EP!

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Interview by Sharon

Cet article Times & Tunes w/ Ziggy Zeitgeist est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

Secretsundaze are back with their first label release in 2023: the follow up to Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange’s 2021’s ‘Kreuzberg Kix EP 1’. The team is very much present and correct with artist WAYNE SNOW once again joining the party on the deep house trip ‘Take Your Time’. It comes complete with a stunning remix by Secretsundaze long time fave, NYC based producer and DJ Jenifa Mayanja, and the jazzy, up-tempo, instrumental ‘Bleached’.

Lead track ‘Take Your Time’ is a warm and atmospheric balm with a driving momentum for those transcendental dance floor moments, elevated to next levels by WAYNE SNOW’s distinctive vocal. Jenifa Mayanja’s classy remix keeps the spirit of the original intact and raises the energy with a tougher drum workout, added sparkle to the synths and stretched out for an epic ride. ‘Bleached’ is classic ZFEX material with a driving and jammy vibe with Ziggy’s unique drum pattern, and bassline all front and centre.

Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange, headed by drummer Ziggy Zeitgeist of 30/70, are well known for their storming live sets, capturing the energy of dance music across house and more broken vibes whilst retaining their strong jazz funk influence and musicianship levels. This EP was written by Ziggy Zeitgeist, Spirit of Sundaze Ensemble’s Lewis Moody, Mathew Hayes and Wayne Snow.

Kreuzberg Kix EP 1 garnered wide radio and club support from the likes of Gilles Peterson, Floating Points, Hunee and Moxie amongst many others and we expect EP 2 will find fans in the same circles.

Pre-order.

text has been provided.

Cet article Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange – Bleached [Secretsundaze] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

Prayer For Peace is the latest LP from Melbroune-hailing nu-jazz maestro Ziggy Zeitgeist and his band, Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange. This is Ziggy’s first full-length project with his current lineup based in Berlin since having moved there in the summer of 2019, and the first to be released on newly-founded label, Get Together Collective. Recorded over a 3-day period in the revered Jazzanova studios in Berlin, and with engineering and mixing handled by master producer Axel Reinemer, this album serves up an ecstatic 8-track showcase of the band’s freewheeling, live-jam oriented approach to jazz-fusion-inspired groove-making.  

Clocking in at track six on the album, “Tightrope” balances many of the various elements that make Ziggy and co.’s music so electrifying. The opening half of the track, which features a mix of steady percussion, warbly bass, funky keys, congas and bongos, feels in line with much of the tradition of jazz-fusion pioneers of the past. But what easily could have become mere pastiche soon escalates into something entirely unique and entrancing. The beat steadily grows more erratic and unfettered once it passes the halfway point, with the tempo and build-up hinting at a techno-like drop. The band never quite lets the track devolve into a state of pure sonic catharsis, however, as they wrangle it back into the jazz-fusion rhythm they so expertly established in the opening half, while still allowing it to develop and evolve in organic ways until petering out at the end.

Ziggy and his cohort liberally take elements from various genres and styles to pay homage to them, while effortlessly staging jaw-dropping feats of experimentation and improvisation. A tough balancing act, indeed, but one that they pull off with panache. 

Pre-order.

Gilad.

Cet article Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange – Tightrope [Get Together Collective] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

The latest EP arriving via renowned Munich/Cologne-based label, Jazz & Milk, finds two kindred spirits teaming up for the first time; multi-instrumentalist and producer, Àbáse, and Australian Nu-Soul drummer and studio wunderkind, Ziggy Zeitgeist (who we recently covered on the site with his smash Kreuzberg Kix). Through their mutual love for experimental live instrumentation and modern club music, they have formed Àbáse X Zeitgeist, with Body Mind Spirit EP serving as their official calling card.

Packed in this sprawling, densely layered EP is a dizzying array of various styles, genres, and musical ideas. Much of the EP derived from improvisatory sessions between Àbáse and Ziggy in Ziggy’s Berlin studio. The two of them spent hours going back and forth, with Àbáse laying down improvised keys and synth work over Ziggy’s drum patterns, who would then mix them to delightfully quirky and eclectic results. The result is something that feels palpably organic and loose, yet grounded in the duo’s affinity for vibey, hard-hitting dance-music grooves. Case-in-point is the centerpiece of the EP, the title track, “Body Mind Spirit”. Coupled with South African-born, Berlin-based artist and singer, Dumama––who brings a stunning traditional South-African vocal performance to the arrangement––the track is a vibrant, hypnotic, eclectically playful cut of world-music-leaning Deep House. 

On this track, and across the entire EP, the duo displays a formidable knack for taking disparate inspirations and infusing them with their own unique sense of groove-building. There is a deep sense of collaboration and mutual respect for each artist’s singular creative vision that courses throughout the entire project, indicating an exciting, creatively fruitful musical partnership that is only just getting started. 

Pre-order.

Cet article Àbáse X Zeitgeist – Body Mind Spirit Ft. Dumama [Jazz & Milk] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

Kreuzberg Kix Vol. 1, the latest EP dropping courtesy of famed London-based label, Secretsundaze, is a blast of nostalgia for eclectic live-sets geared toward the dancefloor. Tapping recent signee, Ziggy Zeitgeist, this EP is a short, yet densely packed glimpse into this musician’s impressive groove-making skills. Ziggy is known for channeling his background in future-jazz experimentation as part of the Melbourne collective, 30/70, into breakbeat-inflected grooves via his group, the Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange

B-track, “Kreuzberg Kix”, offers a more tribal, hard-hitting counterpoint to the melodic odyssey of opening track, “Something Special”. The track unfolds in a freeform, almost languid manner that echoes Ziggy’s jazz influences. Despite its looseness, the track never grows stale nor feels haphazard, as every element perfectly balances out one another. The deep bass and congas that open the track give it its pulsing rhythm and emulate its live-recording feel, while the spacey, sinewy keys provide a slightly cheeky, ever-funky rhythm. 

As the central melody of the groove presents itself, the track feels like it may be transitioning into something akin to a more traditional house or breakbeat number. But there’s a strain of unpredictability running throughout its veins, always keeping the listener on edge but never forsaking its primary M.O.––to provide fresh, inventive rhythms to get your body moving.

Pre-order.

Gilad.

Cet article Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange + Wayne Snow – Kreuzberg Kix [Secretsundaze] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

It’s getting cold in New York. It’s getting cold in my heart. The fucking pandemic hasn’t ended, it’s getting worse. My girlfriend got sick (not Covid), and I have whatever shit she got. It’s Friday morning. I’m writing this last minute. I’m still in bed.

BUT I AM ALSO LIT AS A MOTHERFUCKER RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THIS BASSLINE JUST TURNED MY SPHINCTER INSIDE OUT THEN WRAPPED IT LIKE A PRETZEL. GODDAMN!

We all know Jitwam (you may know him by a different name… a man of many aliases) and we all know his label TheJazzDiaries. Unless you have no head. If you have a stump you wouldn’t be up on this. But if you know you know the heat is always rising from these Brooklyn streets when a release hits.

ANYWHOOOO, today they’ve released a label sampler featuring an excellent cast of characters who’ve delivered songs traversing various shades of deep house. AND. THE. WHOLE. THING. IS. FIRE. I’m melting right now. I could write about each tune but bitch you know I ain’t got the time for that.

I do have time for one, and that’s gonna be the Close Counters Lazer Tag Flip of Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange’s “Rendezvous.” You may have heard this bop on Bradley Zero’s Essential Mix. You may have not. Either way, you’re fuckin’ hearin’ it now yeah? Hear it good cause you deserve to hear good music.

This shit makes me want to don my finest Guayabera and chain smoke a few Cubans. Makes me wanna rent a tiny fiat and bust through the south of France. How does this shit make YOU FEEL THOUGH!? It’s 2021 fam this ain’t about me no more. Reach inside yourself and understand where this tune takes you. ARE YOU ELEVATING YET?

Forreal tho, what a gem. Steady chords, a spicy bassline, some fuckin’ squelching for good measure. Beam me up, Scott.

Grab the TJD Label Sampler Vol. 1 today via TheJazzDiaries Bandcamp page. You won’t be sorry.

Ryan. C

Pre-order.

Cet article Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange – Rendezvous (Close Counters Lazer Tag Flip) [The Jazz Diaries] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.

Brought to us by Ziggy Zeitgeist, drummer and percussionist of Melbourne’s outstanding ‘30/70’, the improv/dance music band known as Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange are a gifted creation fitting effortlessly within the nu-jazz neo-soul era. That being said, you’ll come to realise that the genre is secondary to the crafts(wo)manship, it’s the energy conveyed by the musicians that means everything. 

Today we have the pleasure of premiering a track arranged and produced by the band, taken from ‘ZFEX Volume II’, the follow up of the May 2018 release. Ziggy is joined by Matt Hayes on bass and Lewis Moody on the keys, Javier Fredes on percussion, Erica Tucceri on woodwinds to bring us ‘Logan’s Run’ (yes, you may have watched the sci-fi classic). This number gathers pace through youthful twinkling keys, low-slung sultry bass, jungle influenced drums and percussion sounding as galactic as it does tribal. 

Creating pure transcendental soundscapes and grooves of refreshing expression, ZFEX showcase what it means to catch a vibe and if you remain open to their sonic elevation, you are sure to be moved as the music forces you to connect with yourself. ‘Volume II’ is a timeless instantly mesmerizing space you enter, where you are greeted by raw jazz-funk and the spirit of each musician flowing through live sounds. We can’t help but think of Alfa Mist, Mansur Brown, Yussef Dayes, Thundercat, Triforce and Kamaal Williams with this one, so if you’re a fan of those guys be sure to check this out. 

The raw sentimental sounds of ‘Logan’s Run’ form a story, an affair of the heart played out  arresting all our senses through its beautifully frantic sections and calmer rhythmic parts. We look forward to experiencing a live set from the band to witness them sharing pure love through their excellence. Its is no surprise that ZFEX had the pleasure of jamming on a Brownswood Recording Session, receiving love and support from Gilles Peterson, Alexander Nut, Osunlade,  Byron the Aquarius and many more. 

Pre-order your experience here.

Cet article Zeitgeist Freedom Energy Exchange – Logan’s Run [The Jazz Diaries] est apparu en premier sur Bolting Bits.