Miami-based power quartet Electric Kif explore the boundaries between rock, jazz fusion and electronic drum and bass. Made up of bassist Rodrigo Zambrano, keyboardist Jason Matthews, drummer Armando Lopez and guitarist Eric Escanes, the “Kif” describe their music as “post-nuclear,” a dynamic mash of hard hitting grooves, high octane riffs and cosmic melody.
Notable past performances include Ground Up Music Festival, Rochester International Jazz Festival, Miami Downtown Jazz Festival, and more. Performance highlights have also included opening for artists like Snarky Puppy, Ghost-Note, The Motet, Stanley Jordan and many others many others. In addition, the band has had some fantastic guest appearances at their monthly Miami residencies with Cory Henry, Michael League, Roosevelt Collier, Mark Lettieri and other top notch musicians.
The group now bring us their latest release with the track “Marrakush”, the first single from their upcoming album Dreamlike. Moody and mesmerising, the new track is a progressive jazz song that offers a first glimpse at a record exploring the delicate balance between staying connected to normal reality while making sense of the new one brought on by the pandemic.
Upon the very first note, the band sculpts spacey, dystopian textures that are woven seamlessly into a hypnotic and relentless groove. While the rhythmic layers of the bass and drums propel the track, the arrangement is punctuated by crunchy analog synth and distorted guitar melodies to provide a tangible richness. Swirling rhodes pads and guitar swells processed through analog tape delays underscore the captivating warmth and ethereal nature of the production.
Commenting on the new release, the band offer, “We enjoyed “sitting” on the groove for longer periods of time than we might have in previous records, this was the first song we attempted to play live, and it was fitting for it to be on a live stream in front of only the sound man – just as strange as the new writing process.”
“Marrakush” represents the first demo that ignited the whole project and captures the foundational elements of the whole record’s sound. Producing this song also gave the band a chance to establish a process to work within the unfamiliar restrictions imposed by quarantine.
Both hypnotic and intriguing, the band lay down their blistering musicianship on the new track with organic instrumentation and licks of synthesis. Fiercely rhythmic throughout, “Marrakush” offers the first taste of their new material, with the Dreamlike album set for release this August.
Listen to Marrakush below
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