The Neybuzz

The Neybuzz is the latest group hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area. The group is fronted by the multi hued voice of 80.bug a veteran of the bay’s club scene jam sessions. Her richly textured and sincere vocal styling could not be resisted by just about every label and bands in San Francisco such as: Om records, Infinite Posse, Animastik, Tweekin’ Records, Sunburn and BPM records. 80.bug’s creativity has taken her from fronting heavy metal bands, to pushing the envelope with hard rock bands, and being the emcee of full on hip hop jams in underground clubs in San Francisco.

80.Bug’s mesmerizing voice and infinite vocal styling have been honed and perfected over the years by the full spectrum of musical genres. She has been influenced by the obvious mastery of Stevie Wonder to the subtle lilting voice of Kate Bush. Her vocal vocabulary also takes from the deep earthy voice of Bill Withers to the commanding expressiveness of Annie Lennox. And to round out her vocal abilities, she couches her rhythmic inflexions in deep gospel groove such as Andre Crouch and the soulful abilities of Saul Williams. But her tremendous thirst for new musical expressions and musical horizons has been influenced by Aceyalone and some of the most ground breaking rappers in the Bay area. The most discerning ears have drawn favorable comparisons to the soulful sides of Bonnie Rait and the genre defining vocals of Stevie Nicks in their better days.

80.Bug also enjoys the distinction of being one of the few singers in the world with serious flavor as a disc jockey. You can now catch her dj’ing set as she explores new vocal movements in and around Los Angeles. Besides singing, she’s interested in "positive creativity being formed" enjoys snowboarding and… "Be happy and live free…"

The multi instrumentalist and producer of the Neybuzz is another bay area longtime musician and dj: Ismael. He has long been known in the bay area for uncompromising radio shows that espouse the rawest, darkest, funkiest and abstract sounds coming from the underground. His KPOO radio show was pushing the limits of our collective imagination by raiding some of Jamaica’s most potent Dub vaults, while exploring Reggae and Dub expatriate new treatments in D.C., New York, Miami and England. His "Dreadlock Souljah" radio program completely dedicated to Dub and the musical processes garnered a rabid and loyal following.

Ismael firmly believes in the power of sound to transmit information and engage the mind to nurture the human spirit. Constantly harassed by the perpetual dumbing down of music culture through mass media and lack of alternatives, he and fellow resistors opened the record store that subsequently helped reshape the landscape of music culture in the bay area: BPM records. The record store quickly became the must shop store in northern California, providing the embryonic underground rave scene with the latest in House, Trip Hop, Trance, Breakbeat, Dancehall, Down Tempo etc…. Presently, BPM records store is generally regarded as a milestone in the development of the San Francisco dance music scene and the music is "mainstream". But back then, before the dj world was infected by the disease of self importance, Ismael and fellow music addicts were simply seeking to bring together the sound concocted in the basements, home made studios in Chicago, D.C., New York and England. "It was no altruistic undertaking by any stretch of the imagination. We were exploring the possibilities of sound for ourselves, to find an alternative from the daily insults from the radio airwaves. And, really, trying to dissect what underground mutants like us around the States and the world were doing. The scene at the time was getting stale and the frustration needled us to get out of our comfort zone and look for the underground’s groove pocket. We were just trying to slow down the disintegration of substance by styles and trends."

At the same time, Ismael was also the guitarist and producer of the premier nine piece dub-jazz band by the name of Dub Addxx. The Addxx is a collective of some of the best musicians in the Bay Area. They remain to this day the one and only true bay area band dedicated to the dub jazz genre. They have toured and earned much respect from the international stars they’ve opened for, including Sugar Minott, Black Uhuru, Yellowman, The Roots Radics, HR, Culture and many others. Ismael has produced their first two albums (Dub To The Truthseekers and Dub Mission) and is currently negotiating the release of their third record mixed by Scientist: Beta Dub.

In search of the perfect beat, Ismael teamed up with dj EFX in ’98 to explore the underbelly of rhythm and formed the experimental duo Truefunkeosis. This team released several decidedly edgy 12" that garnered mixed reviews from the U.S. critics but sold quite well in Europe. Acting on a tip from Niven at Sunburn records, 80.bug was contacted to lend us some of her dynamic vocals. The chemistry worked perfectly and a couple of singles ensued under the moniker, The Budwrestlers. With such a fruitful collaboration, Ismael went back into the studio again to try to find the perfect balance between Dub, Downtempo and Soul. Thus The NeyBuzz.

Their album can be purchased at their official website, www.theneybuzz.com.