- Soil & "PIMP" Sessions
- Music / Dates
- Pictures / Bio
SOIL & ‘PIMP” SESSIONS is an explosive jazz band comprised of six musicians; Shacho (agitator, spirit), Tabu Zombie (trumpet), Motoharu (sax), Josei (piano), Akita Goldman (bass) and Midoryn (drums).
At its core, the group is about giving pulsating live performances. SOIL & PIMP SESSIONS combine the highest musicianship with the coolest of cool sounds and atmosphere. Their brand of jazz is rough around the edges, unadulterated entertainment and constantly kept at boiling point. Each member brings his own unique talent and perspective. They originally met at a club event in Tokyo in 2001. The Tokyo club scene was dominated by Djs until SOIL & ‘PIMP” SESSIONS arrived, breaking the mold as live pioneers.
In 2003 they had no commercial recordings available, yet that year on reputation alone the band was invited to perform at Japan’s premier festival, Fuji Rock Festival. It was a defining moment, lapped up by those lucky enough to witness it, hugely praised and one of the major talking points of the entire festival.
After a major record company scramble, the group signed to Japanese major, Victor Entertainment in 2004. Their first album “Pimpin” came out in June, immediately garnering rave reviews, and credited as one of the most influential releases of that year. The group defied boundaries and genre, attracting listeners of jazz, club and rock. They performed at the major summer festivals in Japan. At the Asagiri Jam Festival, fellow performers Los Lobos caught their act and were so impressed they invited each member to join them on stage as a soloist in a jam session. The session became the highlight of the festival, a bright spot in the bad weather.
In February 2005, they released their first full album, “Pimp Master’. The album was soon playlisted on the main FM stations - unusually for an instrumental group - and they graced the cover of a poster campaign for Tower Records, the biggest chain of record stores in Japan.
On a trip to Japan Gilles Peterson was slipped a SOIL & “PIMP SESSIONS CD by his friend and fellow music fiend Toshio Matsuura (ex UFO). Gilles was hooked, playing tracks four weeks in a row on his Radio 1 “Worldwide’ show and inviting the band over to record a session at the BBC’s legendary Maida Vale studio.
They performed their first UK gig at Cargo in August 2005. The band tore the roof off the Shoreditch club with an electric performance that won them a new legion of UK fans. They also picked up the ‘John Peel Play More Jazz’ award at Gilles’ Worldwide Awards 2005. Their reputation outside Japan is growing rapidly via the international jazz network.
Last year Brownswood unleashed SOIL & “PIMP" SESSIONS on the world outside Japan. It was a proud moment - presenting the very first UK album release. That newly formatted album, Pimp Master, showcases the very the best of their work – a mix of original compositions and jazz standards - and was released summer 2006. The excellent German label Compost Records will be delivered the album for the rest of Europe. The band also performed live across Europe this summer at a variety of festivals and events including the North Sea Jazz Festival and Montreux. And they recently blew the roof off the Hiro Ballroom in New York for their first ever US appearance.
SOIL & “PIMP SESSIONS have arrived!!
