- Artist: Chin Chin
- Title: Chin Chin
- Label: Definitive Jux
- Release Date: Apr 29, 08
click to download CD cover- Track Listing:
Chin Chin, formed in 2001 by Torbitt and Wilder Schwartz - joined soon after by Atlanta Georgia bred Jeremy Wilms- was originally intended to improvise back-up music for singers and MC's at a monthly party in Brooklyn. Realizing a greater potential, the brothers started writing music. With songs in place, they began recruiting musicians from the fertile Williamsburg scene.
Combining elements of jazz, funk, disco, contemporary R&B, rock, and electro, with smart lyrics, powerful horn arrangements, great showmanship, and a taste for partying Chin Chin have synthesized the quintessential elements of such dance floor heroes as Brass Construction, Ohio Players, and Roger Troutman, while presenting something decidedly new.
As a live unit, Chin Chin can range from the streamlined quartet to a thunderous ten-piece ensemble. A typical Chin Chin show will quickly evolve into a contagious dance party, the audience responding at once to their incendiary musicianship and charisma. Time OUT NY aptly summed this phenomenon up when they said that Chin Chin were "tighter than your boss with a raise." No surprise they were featured in the august 2004 FADER magazine as a band to watch out for.
In New York as well as Europe they have shared the stage with Tv On The Radio, Antibalas afro beat ensemble, Gogol Bordello, Sufjan Stevens, Lily Allen, ESG, Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings, Theo Parrish, DJ Spinna, Doctor Dog, the Rogers Sisters,the Bravery, and VHS or Beta.
Each member brings unique experience to the band. Wilder Zoby, the youngest member of the band, brings creative spark with his keyboard and synthesizer versatility and vocal eccentricity. A powerful performer, he uses his experience as an actor to engage and excite audiences. He has been found doing session work for Hip Hop giants Beans and El-P. Wilder also scored The Maysle Brothers film on the making of Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic as well as the Strictly kings production People. He received a jazz performance degree from the New School of Jazz and studied with such faculty as Chico Hamilton, Reggie Workman and Junior Mance.
Torbitt Schwartz has a reputation as a well-versed drummer who also shares vocal duties in Chin Chin. Raised between Brooklyn and Louisville, Kentucky he studied jazz performance and composition at the New School of Jazz and contemporary. He's a multi-instrumentalist/DJ/producer that has played or recorded with Bernard Purdie, TV On the Radio, Peanut Butter Wolf, Matthew Shipp, and Reverend Vince Anderson, among others. Under his dj persona "Lil' Shalimar" he has held down residencies at some of New York City's most happening clubs (Good World, Black Betty, Pianos, Union Pool) and parties (Rubulad). His production company formed with bassist Jeremy Wilms has produced music for documentaries, independent films, and comercial works (CNN, Nike, Sundance Channel, etc.).
Jeremy Wilms started playing guitar at the age of 7. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree in 1995 from Georgia State University in Atlanta. In 1997 Jeremy moved to New York City where he continued studies with jazz pianist Kenny Werner. He has since shared the stage and/or recorded with Tony Allen, Steve Shelley and Lee Ranaldo from Sonic Youth, Daniel Carter, Sabir Mateen, Chris Lee, Christina Rosenvinge, Reverend Vince Anderson, Akoya Afro-beat, Dub Nomads, Butch Morris, among others.
On records and/or on stage the band gets a lot of help from some of New York City's top session musicians: Tada Hirano, Jeff Pierce, Jesse Boykins III, Yusuke Yamamoto, Antibalas Afro -Beat ensemble, Felix Chen, Yoshi Takemasa, Marcus Farrar and many more......
Guitarist Tada Hirano played in cult bands Blonde Redhead and Cibbo Matto, Jeff Pierce has played with The Temptations, the Delfonics, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra,
Although Jesse Boykins (featured on Hey Hey) is only 21 years old, he has been singing, writing and recording for more than half of his life. His voice spans a 5-octave range and his sound draws upon his eclectic taste, creating a style that is not bound by generations or time. He honed his skills as with classical trainer Kamal Scott and Universal Music recording artist, Bilal.
The group's self-titled debut is out now on Definitive Jux. From the opening of "Miami" to the closing of "Step by Step", Chin Chin show us their talent to raise the excitement level in the room by several degrees, mixing powerful grooves with catchy melodies and smart lyrics on such burners as "Miami", "Toot d'Amore", "Hey Hey" and "Appetite". They also demonstrate a knack for arrangements and more sophisticated settings in such delicate tracks as Ohio, Le Petit Mort, Step by Step. Destined to become a classic, this is definitely one of those albums you will listen to from beginning to end for years to come.