MARCH 03 / 8:00PM
21 & Over / $10 Advance

get tickets

Nectar Presents:

N.A.S.A.

Staxx Brothers

• Special Guest

N.A.S.A.

N.A.S.A., and their worldwide debut The Spirit of Apollo, is an ongoing creative collaboration between two lifelong music aficionados, Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon, and their friends, friends of friends and musical heroes. While N.A.S.A. stands for North America/South America and contains a number of superstar artists from both coasts of the U.S., it is about as far from a tension-building geographical showdown as a record can get. Rather, The Spirit of Apollo was born with the righteous goal of bringing people together through music and art, and that is exactly what masterminds Sam Spiegel (Squeak E. Clean) and Ze Gonzales (DJ Zegon) have done. Unexpected collaborations abound on the seventeen track release. Tom Waits growls over Kool Keith, Karen O taunts while Ol' Dirty Bastard gives shoutouts to Wu Tang and N.A.S.A from the grave, and David Byrne, Chuck D and others expound on the evils of "Money." In spite of the range of performers, the pairings seem organic, inspired and make perfect sense on the first listen, never coming off as ironic or impulsive. Spiegel explains that the tracks themselves dictated who would be approached to lend a voice, revealing the larger vision behind the project: "we never said, ‘let's make a track for this person.' We'd usually make something we liked, and then as we were starting to write the song, it would tend to go in a direction that we'd be like, ‘this sounds like George Clinton,' or ‘this sounds like Method Man.' We would start to feel the song out, and feel the artist through the song as we did it. Basically, we'd sit around as we were making these tracks and say the nuttiest combination of names, like our dream of who we could get on the song. It's crazy, a lot of times they actually happened." That passion and appreciation for music is the driving force behind The Spirit of Apollo. Conceived in a crowded party in Sao Paulo and nurtured by a shared love of vintage Brazilian soul and funk records, N.A.S.A. was born when Spiegel and Gonzales got together in a studio and hit "record." "WE met at DVNO's studio party," Spiegel reminisces. "The next day we were flipping a Toni Tornado sample at my studio which later became the song ‘Hip Hop' with Fatlip, KRS One, and Slim Kid Tre." Five years later, after thousands of miles traveled, many favors called in, countless hours spent in recording studios, bartered, traded and out of pocket, N.A.S.A. landed at Anti Records, a label that is home to other likeminded visionaries such as Zack de la Rocha, Nick Cave and N.A.S.A.-guest vocalist Tom Waits. Characteristically, N.A.S.A. is more than just a record. The enthusiasm and connections of Sam Spiegel and Ze Gonzales cannot be contained by a single album, so the project naturally expanded into other mediums. A full-length documentary film is nearing completion, including interviews with many of the artists who contributed to The Spirit of Apollo and behind-the-scenes footage from the studio sessions. Highlights include fun at Sizzla's compound in Jamaica, Method Man showing off his magic tricks and the altered consciousness of the George Clinton recording session. In addition, other N.A.S.A. friends have lent their visual talents, and animated music videos for several of The Spirit of Apollo's tracks have been created by some of today's most highly-regarded street artists such as Shepard Fairey, Sage Vaughn, Barry McGee, Marcel Dzama and others. A remix record is already in the works, and Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon will put their turntable skills to good use as N.A.S.A. goes live with Brazilian percussionists, visual effects, art installations and special guests.

Staxx Brothers

A Detroit rapper, a Puerto Rican Jagger, and a Gypsy walk out of a bar with one of the seminal Rock & Roll Records of the past decade. Backed by Seattle Jazz & Rock heavyweights Joe Doria, Dave Carter, Andy Coe and RL Heyer, The Staxx Brothers have created a living document that uncovers Seattle’s lost identity as an urban crossroad for classic R & B, Hip Hop and Hard ASS Soul. It all starts with The 12th Street Blues. -Dylan Van Keef

LINKS

• N.A.S.A. on MySpace
• Staxx Brothers on MySpace

return to the calendar