Biography
From Bandcamp:
San Franciscan Peter Berend’s mystery unit KWJAZ flashed forth this self-titled slab of “post-plastic sublime decomposed luxury grooves” on cassette via his own Brunch Groupe imprint early in 2011 and the 120 listeners lucky enough to grip a copy know who they are. It only took half a side before we green-lit this gem for vinyl treatment and are delighted to present it thusly.
Comprised of two side-long suites, “Once In Babylon” and the oddly monikered “Frighteous Wane,” KWJAZ nimbly ebbs and flows through clouds of crystal keys and smoky horns, jazz-dub vignettes, soft-focus synths, and soft-rock abstractions. A riddle of an LP that ripples and ripens with each listen.
From ghostcapital, blogspot
"Wow. We can't get over this incredibly cosmic, tripped-out debut cassette from KWJAZ. SF mastermind Peter Berends decides that space is the place and sets his sights for uncharted musical territory. Falling somewhere between outsider instrumental pop and dubbed-out psychedelic ethno-jazz, Berends leads a colorful excursion into the astral unknown. The two, side-long tracks unfold like some otherworldly mix-tape, deep basslines giving way to sizzling warbling drones, cut-up bits of rhythmic clatter ooze and materialize into slow grooving monuments to the stars. Chopped up samples and distorted swells melt into a lo-fi woozy web. Hazy, primitive beats (picture a slowed down Ethiopiques loop) rock and sway as horns, electric piano and weirdo samples add to the celestial crunk. And keep in mind, though KWJAZ is weird, far-out and strange, this humble cassette is overflowing with musicianship and close attention to layering and detail.
What makes all the tripped-out, genre defying weirdness so satisfying is Berends's ability to form these diverse elements into a propulsive, evocative musical journey through time and genre. Moments of cool jazz tranquility unexpectedly morph into trip-hop fantasy ballads, long-tone new age bliss suddenly shifts into West African romps, and somehow all these tangents seem impossibly and seamlessly linked. We can't recommend this one enough!
Limited to an edition of 121, fans of Hype Williams, Rangers or Ducktails will not want to miss out on this lysergic masterpiece!" (Aquarius Records)
Two laudanum sides of murky and cavernous analog dub-psych oblivion. Damn near unclassifiable, KWJAZ offers up a deep and tremendous instrumental zone-out of the highest order. This extremely-limited *sold-out* cassette is an auspicious first release from The Brunch Groupe. Looks like its slated for LP reissue from Not Not Fun in Summer 20011. Highly recommended. Big props to mojfaj for this rip.
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