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| Mateo Monk and Sol with the DC Reggae Allstars perform in Arlington Reggae Lovers be sure not to miss this special concert of an incredible blend of DC heavyweight players! Mateo Monk & Sol with the DC Reggae Allstars (featuring the core of Arkives Outernational) perform in Arlington Virginia on Friday February 25! The Archives is the brainchild of Eric Hilton of Thievery Corporation with a mission to unearth & recreate reggae's earliest roots- the classic sounds of ska, Studio One, rocksteady, and dub. The band is made up of all veteran players, several of whom have toured internationally with various legendary acts such as Culture and Eek-A-Mouse. Mateo spent six years in Boulder CO leading an original reggae/soul fusion band called Natural Kingdom with some success. While opening for the legendary reggae band Culture, he was "discovered" by acclaimed reggae producer Georges Kouakou and proceeded to record his first solo release entitled "Guidance and Protection" at Lion and Fox Studios in Washington DC. Georges co-produced several of African reggae superstar Alpha Blondy's groundbreaking records, including the "Jerusalem" album, and he has toured with many reggae greats including Culture, Burning Spear and the Wailers. While recording the record, Mateo also had the pleasure of working with Junior Marvin of Bob Marley and the Wailers. "Guidance and Protection" was picked up by the French record label Sankofa Blackstar and has received international airplay as well as frequent rotation on XM Radio in the US. In the fall of 2004, Mateo played a two week, multi-city tour throughout France with The Viceroys and Clinton Fearon of the Gladiators to promote the disc. After the tour, Mateo decided to settle in the Washington DC area to take advantage of the new set of connections and opportunities that recording the album had brought about. Since being in DC, he has been a member of four bands, One Night Stand featuring Walter Tate on sax, THC featuring Dezzy Hyson of Culture and Mojanya, The Kleen Kut Reggae Band from Liberia, and currently, The Arkives Outernational. He has also done plenty of freelance gigs, working in the studio and onstage with various artists, including Alpha Blondy, Junior Marvin, Ruth A. Brown, and the Lenny Kurlou All-stars. He is currently recording an album with the Archives Outernational that is being produced by Eric Hilton of the Thievery Corporation to be released under ESL Record's new ESL Dub-plate label. Sol is a incredible guitarist, bassist, and vocalist who has toured the world with roots, blues, and funk legends and pioneers (including Taj Mahal) and works with members of Corey Harris band (also blending roots, blues, and reggae). Sol's recent album "Freedom" presented a blend of roots reggae, raw blues, and rock, with some stand out reggae tracks including the title track and "Hellhound". write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |