Miles Mosley “Uprising” (via World Galaxy Records)
via World Galaxy: Miles Mosley stepped into the light with magnetic force this year following the release of his new single ‘ABRAHAM’, garnering critical acclaim from worldwide press such as NPR, The Guardian, BBC Radio, The FADER, and Bass Player Magazine.
The Los Angeles-based upright bass virtuoso and composer has reached impressive professional heights in recent years, and his full length album has been eagerly anticipated.
Now the moment audiences across the globe have been waiting for is finally here: Miles Mosley announces the release of his album UPRISING, scheduled to be released worldwide on digital and vinyl formats on January 27, 2017. Ahead of the album release in January, Miles Mosley is offering the second single in the powerful track “Young Lion.” As the opening floodgates to UPRISING, “Young Lion” bursts with energy from every seam. Scorching horn lines, slick keys and a propulsive rhythm section unlike any other in modern music, the end of the track is supplanted with a mind-bending effects laced bass solo from Miles that shows why he’s one of the most respected bassists alive.
Scheduled to hit digital outlets September 16th, “Young Lion” is filled with gusto in lyric and music form. A perfect beginning to the story of UPRISING. It encapsulates the dynamic range of genres and expression that traces the rest of the album. UPRISING serves as his most personal and defining climb throughout his long-time career in the music industry. For Miles, it combines a deep love of songwriting with an innovative, truly one-of-a-kind ability on the Upright Bass. A balance he has worked decades to execute with precision, quality and taste.
UPRISING will release on the Alpha Pup Records sub-imprint World Galaxy, and features the collective Miles co-founded, the West Coast Get Down, a family of musicians he helped bring together during their formative years. The group have imprinted their stamp on the world unlike any other musical collective in recent times. Long-time manager and music collaborator Barbara Sealy, who has worked with the collective since they were in high school, co-produced the album with Tony Austin, shaping the content through the infamous KSL Sessions that produced over 150 finished compositions including those found on Kamasi Washington’s “The Epic.” As Miles describes, “I was the organizer, Tony Austin was the technical guru, Kamasi Washington was the wrangler, Ryan Porter was the heart, and our long-time manager Barbara Sealy was the safety net that made sure we were able to be in a safe, creative space. I began my record at Tony’s studio and transitioned to KSL to do Strings and Choir, yet once we were all in the groove more songs started crossing the finish line.”
Miles and company blend into a unified system of brilliant luminance through UPRISING. Kamasi Washington, Ryan Porter, Zane Musa, Dontae Winslow and the other L.A. horn players shout from the mountain tops; Brandon Coleman brings unrelenting funk on vintage keys; Cameron Graves displays his ethereal piano virtuosity, and Tony Austin holds it down with equal measure on drums and the production/engineering chair.
UPRISING is Miles’ personalized take on the musical journey of his life, and that of his West Coast Get Down family. It stands as an impressive record of deep conviction and technical prowess, following the influences he has gained from legends such as Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix. Every lyric, rhythm, melody and harmony from UPRISING comes from the deepest reserves of Miles’ soul and the experiences he has endured over the last two decades in the music industry: “I wanted to create a work that was natural and intimate, but still maintained a sense of grandeur.” Miles explains. “As if you were best friends with a giant. The West Coast Get Down, the Strings, the Choir; I sought to utilize all of these elements together to create something with memorable melodies and a message to the people that we are here for them. We are and want to be the loudspeaker for their hearts.”
The album demonstrates Miles’ vision and scope, traversing through stunning vocal cadences and complex music arrangements with scorching horn lines, innovative bass solos, thought-provoking lyricism and an overall dynamic that bleeds with the lineage of the West Coast Get Down. It showcases tracks reminiscent of the best that pop, jazz, blues, funk and soul have to offer.
As a connecting factor from the beginning to the end, UPRISING walks the listener through the trials, tribulations and successes that Miles has experienced in the music industry, in a way that holds a mirror to the broader human experience of living in the modern age. It culminates in the triumphs that he and the West Coast Get Down gained in that process, honing their craft to perfection while uplifting a generation. Every song becomes a piece to the whole, highlighting Miles’ strengths as a composer, musician and lyrical seeker of truth.
The power of the West Coast Get Down’s voice has manifested in numerous ways, and Miles Mosley continues that journey for audiences in an entirely new way with UPRISING, the sound of this generation:
“I have always loved the power of words, and what they make us feel. The word “UPRISING” is often used in moments in which a group of people witness their strength in numbers and band together to seize an opportunity. Not only are we living in a time where people all over the world in art and politics are recognizing their own power in numbers, but as a member of the West Coast Get Down it seems fitting that this new attention to our sound, and the impact we are capable of making across genres feels like our own UPRISING. This is my piece of our story.” – Miles Mosley
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