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Photos from the Shotgun Wedding Quintet live at the Great American Music Hall on April 4, 2008.

Here’s a killin’ video clip featuring Realistic Orchestra with special guest Dublin on vocals during their recent live album recording session last Tuesday night March 4, 2008. As usual, the Jazz Mafia crew was lighting up Bruno’s just like they always do, so make sure to head down there on Tuesday nights for a good time, and definitely keep an eye on their website for updated info about when their new live album will be released.

Photos from Lyrics Born live at The Independent in San Francisco on November 18, 2007.

I’d like to give a huge shout out to LB and his tour manager, as well as to PDub and Justin, for making these photos possible. It was a kickin’ night of music for sure, so thanks!

Last month I was invited to help document the Shotgun Wedding Quintet’s CD Release in San Francisco on July 20, 2007. The show featured the quintet plus their full string section kickin’ an awesome blend of hip hop, jazz, and symphonic fusion to a sold out show at The Independent. I went early, hung out for sound check, and stayed the whole night having a great time listening to the music while shooting photos and a little bit of video along the way. I’ve included a few of my best photographs as well as a short video montage I produced from the night below.

 Flash 8 Video (FLV) [4:20m]: Play Now | Download
 Audio Only (MP3) [4:20m]: Play Now | Download

Here’s a nice set of photos from the Crown City Rockers live at The Independent on July 20, 2007.

Raashan Ahmad, Emcee
Headnodic, Bass
Max MacVeety, Drums
Kat Ouano, Keyboards
Woodstock, Sampler/Percussion

The Jazz Mafia Crew are finally back playing in their old digs at Bruno’s in the Mission. After a year-long renovation, Bruno’s has reopened, and Jazz Mafia Tuesdays has returned to its original home after their temporary residency at 12 Galaxies during the past year. Jazz Mafia Tuesdays is San Francisco’s longest running weekly live music night and was voted “Best Live Music Weekly Night” by the SF Weekly in their Best of the Bay 2006 edition. I missed the first week’s show that featured the Realistic Orchestra, but I got a major dose of mafia action the very next week when the Shotgun Wedding Quintet rocked the house until last call. Although the venue was still working out some of the kinks in their new sound system, the acoustics in the new Bruno’s are excellent, and I was able to record this slammin’ five-minute video to share with you all. So take a look at the video and make sure to come down to Bruno’s on Tuesday nights — trust me, you won’t regret it!

 QuickTime/iPod Video [4:27m]: Play Now | Download
 Windows Media Video [4:27m]: Play Now | Download

Here’s another hot post from some of our friends in the Jazz Mafia, who just took top honors from the SFWeekly for putting on the Best Live Music Night in SF in 2006. This time we were blown away by the live hip hop talents of the Shotgun Wedding Quintet playing their once-a-month gig at 12 Galaxies in the Mission. These guys have got real talent and a lot of potential, and I personally can’t wait until their first studio album is released. Dublin rocked the house with his smooth-flowing rap style all while being backed up by a top-notch live band that includes multi-instrumentalists playing saxaphone, trombone, keyboard, bass, and drums — not to mention some jammin’ live sampling and scratching from DJ Aspect. If that wasn’t enough, they ended the night with Dublin and special guests slammin’ some incredible roundtable freestyle rhymes on topics suggested by the audience. Truely amazing stuff that is not to be missed. So, make sure to watch the seven minute video below where they play two swinging tracks back-to-back, and make sure to go check them out live sometime.

 QuickTime Video [7:34m]: Play Now | Download
 Windows Media Video [7:33m]: Play Now | Download
 Shotgun Wedding 1st Set [58:55m]: Play Now | Download
 Shotgun Wedding 2nd Set [60:50m]: Play Now | Download