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Boston afrofunk nonet The Macrotones have been getting busy around town for a decade now. With the help of Phil DeSisto, they’re about to get dirty, too.
DeSisto, the ringleader of homegrown soul brigade Gold Blood & Associates, joins up with The Macrotones on the band’s new single “TKO (Trying To Be Your Man).” The straight-up filthy funk track is the initial taste from the first of the ‘Tones’ two new EPs, The Prisoner Flees, which drops Friday (October 13) with the record release the following night at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge. A second record, The Shark Eats, is due by year’s end.
This weekend, DeSisto will be on board and on stage at the show, living out a bit of a long-term fantasy.
“Well, before I started Gold Blood I wanted to have the Macrotones be my back-up band,” DeSisto tells Vanyaland. “I would go to their shows all the time and I fell in love with them. I became friends with a few of the members… I think I’ve been on their asses about writing some tunes together, and finally — here we are.”
“TKO (Trying To Be Your Man)” was recorded during The Macrotones’ session at Rubber Tracks (RIP).
“I tracked ‘TKO’ with 20 minutes left in the Rubber Tracks session,” DeSisto adds. “I don’t like spending much time in the studio so I view it as getting ready for a fight or doing some insane workout. I’m gonna work on a few more songs with them. I’ve played a few shows with them so we’ve been doing some deep cut soul covers from Joe Tex and Baby Huey and the Babysitters. Ya know — for the real soul brothers and sisters!”
The Lizard Lounge party also features a performance by afrobeat/ethiojazz/post-bob crew Dingonek Street Band, and the horn-driven Macrotones will also welcome Destroy Babylon’s Rob Carmichael and Nigerian-American poet, singer, and activist Iyeoka to front a few of their compositions.
Get your hands dirty with “TKO” below, and get more info on the party via the flyer after the jump.
Featured Macrotones image by Jon Mercer.