Brownswood Recordings

STR4TA unveil a refreshing neoteric layer on this latest offering. Led by broadcaster/ DJ Gilles Peterson and musician/producer Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick. In a natural departure from their intoxicating signature new-wave-jazz-funk sound, reverberating with the essence of electro-street-soul in the UK, ‘‘When You Call Me’ is released in digital format on 25th February 2022 via Brownswood Recordings.

In this celestial union, Peterson acts as the catalyst spurring Maunick into the studio with a handful of references from a bygone era, where the staple jazz-funkers of the late 70s like Freeez, Light of The World and Atmosfear collided with the rise of electro-funk production in the early 80s, the predecessor of the UK street soul sounds like Soul II Soul. Bejeweled with Maunick’s laser focus as a world class producer, this unique offering pulsates with the mystery of a track, created in the heart of that era, dominated by the deep distinctive slaps of the Roland 808. A stalwart in the birth of UK street soul, Maunick produced some of the pioneers at the time, such as Steven Dante and Total Contrast. When Peterson proposed this sensical curveball in STR4TA’s evolution, Maunick sprang into action laying down all the vocals, silky guitar composition and drum programming. Not forgetting the rawness of STR4TA’s DNA, real drum high hats were added to the mix along with choice percussive elements to contrast with the drum pattern.

Keeping the simplicity in the production Maunick explored the cowbell on the TR808 “there’s a little electronic ring about it. The moment that came out it was like a call to awareness;” inspiring the track’s title. He continues, “As creatives, we can journey and tap into our past at any time. The excitement never dies because we write and play music about it, so when I do a track like ‘When You Call Me’ I'm reliving a little experience.” Peterson adds, “It made total sense for us to make a street soul record because that sound is making waves right now and Bluey was originally part of it. This track blew my mind because the production was so great, so simple and straight. I recommended adding some live drums, in a similar vein to innovative tracks like ‘Rude Movements’ (SunPalace) and we got Peter Hinds (Incognito, Light Of The World, Dâm-Funk) to do the keyboard line on it.”

STR4TA is the new wave jazz funk project pioneered by Gilles Peterson and Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick. Long-time friends and collaborators, STR4TA sees them mine new musical possibilities inspired by a shared formative era. Their debut album ‘Aspects’ was released in March 2021 to a rapturous reception, in the first material that Maunick and Peterson have released together in over a decade. With standout tracks ‘We Like It’ achieving over 1 million streams on Spotify, ‘Rhythm In Your Mind’ on Jazz FM’s playlist for over 12 weeks, and a remix EP featuring Melé, Dave Lee, Greg Wilson, Dave Aju & more released at the end of 2021. Heavily supported by BBC 6Music, The Guardian, Wax Poetics, The Vinyl Factory, CLASH, Télérama (FR), Radio Nova (FR), Rolling Stones Italy & Japan. STR4TA are in the studio working on their latest body of work tipped for release later in 2022, with selected live dates scheduled over the summer.

‘When You See Me’ by STR4TA is available across all digital streaming platforms on Friday 8th April 2022.