Tag: Latin

Classic track with some new spice thrown in for a fuller flavor.

Bio from last.fm:

Sidestepper began in 1997 as an electronic solo project, mixing English beats and bass with Latin sounds. Richard Blair had first come to Colombia in 1993 to work with renowned folk singer Toto La Momposina – the two had met at Peter Gabriel’s Real World studios where Richard worked as an engineer. He had planned to be there for a month, but stayed for two years, getting lost in Latin music culture. On returning to the UK he began to investigate how to create a new Latin bass line culture using modern beats and bass. The result was the first album, 1997’s ’Southern Star’ featuring the Latin drum and bass tune ‘Maine’. After meeting songwriter Ivan Benavides on the Carlos Vives record La tierra del Olvido, the two began to write together, producing the future club classic and sidestepper’s first vocal tune – ‘Logozo’ in 1997. A call came from Chris Blackwell’s Palm Pictures, and on signing the deal Richard returned to Colombia to make the next album. Again Ivan co-wrote and produced and ‘More Grip‘ was released in 2000, a homage to a salsa night out in Bogota.

Sidestepper began to play live for the first time, playing gigs in the UK and across Europe, at Glastonbury and Roskilde amongst many others, and Richard continued to dj in the UK and US. Meanwhile, writing work had begun on 3AM In Beats We Trust, as Richard travelled between London and NY where Ivan was living. The two recorded the core of the album in Bogota in 2002, some eventually unused sessions in Jamaica, with Cuban singer Ronald Infante in Havana, and mc’s Rubi Dan and Juxsi D in London. The mix was done in autumnal London, and 3AM was released to critical acclaim in 2003.

Richard returned to Bogota to form a live band that would be based in Colombia, and between old hands like Janio Coronado and Teto Ocampo, and new talent like Erika Munoz, a special magic has emerged with this incarnation of Sidestepper, which has been wowing audiences in Colombia, Mexico and the US for the last few years.

After touring extensively with the band, Ivan and Richard wanted to make a record written specifically for each member. The writing and original tracking were done at a farm outside Bogota, and mixing was done at a studio in the city. ‘Continental’ was released in Colombia in July 2006, and will be released in the rest of the world soon.

The current line up is – Janio Coronado, ‘Goyo’ Martinez, Erika Munoz – voices Ivan Benavides – electronics and voice, Teto Ocampo – guitar, Kike Egurrola – drums, Richard Blair – bass and beats

Sidestepper – Papaya 07