Electronic Pop from Kongress

Originally formed in 1975, Kongress is a music project that’s been graced by a host of talented musicians over the years. Their organic sonic evolution saw them flow from half hour improvised jams to two minute song structures as they delivered their creative vision over the years.

Now led by keyboard wizard Otto von Ruggins, the band has made a triumphant resurgence over the last two years, starting with the 2020 single “The Ugly American”. Joining Otto, Phil Faconti added his screaming guitar prowess alongside the world class electric cellist Dave Eggar on the track.

Followed up the next year with the song “Running With The Wolves”, the group enlisted the vocal talents of Sky Saxon to lift the song to new heights. In April of this year, Kongress drew inspiration from the events in Ukraine to pen the single “NuSense”, paired with a music video, before sharing their latest work with the new track “Summer Days”.

Released by TikTok via their in-house distribution service, “Summer Days” is accompanied by a music video that features footage from Mermaid Parades over the decades. Laying down an abstract and psychedelic synth-based indie sound, with “Summer Days” Kongress delivers more of their fiercely original sound.

Commenting on the single, Otto shares, “I wrote Summer Days a lifetime ago on April 28, 1967, thinking it was in a ‘60s group’s style. I came across the lyrics recently and after playing the old music, I figured it needed some new music for today, which I had created in the Spring using my iPad. I utilise the Bloc Waves App as my band these days and was able to transfer many ideas into Ableton Live that needed lyrics to make them viable.”

Continuing, “Enter ‘Summer Days’ and my concept of the most familiar iconic event that ushers in the Summer – Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade! This video is the pick of my best footage from over 30 years of parades. As I worked on the video, I felt as though I had choreographed the participants to dance to my music and then captured it with my camera.”

Watch the video for Summer Days below

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