Interview: Dana Leong’s Blurred Boundaries

RD: On Milk & Jade, which is phenomenal I might add, there are a number of extended jams, tranquil string segments and ambient soundscapes. Do you find the average hip hop fan enjoys the more intricate musical elements of your material, or do you tend to draw from more of a jazz fan base?

DL: Thanks! We’re proud that the new MILK & JADE stands up as an awesome record on many fronts, but mostly because we put love into EVERY song (instead of looking at is as a album of songs with only a few good singles). You’re right, there are a few layers going on in the Milk & Jade sound (liquid lyricism built on rock-hard rhythm). My job is to make sure they all taste good to your ears and body. With audience and fanbase, we get the ideal types of audiences which are DIVERSE! You’ll definitely see the hard core music fanatics – who enjoy the cutting edge freshness – youthful hip fans of FUN high energy shows, and even family members of all ages coming out to enjoy music together.

RD: In terms of your lyrical style, you seem to have a very rhythmic approach to your writing. It reminds me of Arrested Development at times. When you write, do you feel and hear that pacing in your mind?

DL: Absolutely, I put myself into the listener’s shoes when I create albums and live shows. In all great music, whether live or recorded, it takes you on a journey. The energy level, musical message, emotional experience, all are key parts of the whole, which need to be balanced just right. In this album, we had so much IN YOUR FACE funk rock hip hop groove, that I had to put in an intermission track and finally, one beautiful slow feature for our friend the legendary pianist composer Ryuichi Sakamoto in order to let the album breathe!

RD: Time to choose your favorite child. Of all the new material, which song would you say makes you the happiest?

DL: On first thought, I’d probably say the first (Dana Leong Quintet – Leaving New York) and the newest (MILK & JADE by Dana Leong). However, we’ve done so much filtering and choosing when putting together ALL of the recordings that there are no band choices. Look up Dana Leong on iTunes and flip through for yourself. As I mentioned I always approach the albums with an ALL FLAVOR and “no fillers”.

RD: What are some of the ways you used your computer in this material?

DL: My computer is the hub in my current sound setup on stage and in the studio. In the studio, I’m using a beautiful pairing of all vintage gear (Neve, Neumann, etc.) going into high end digital conversion. On stage I use my computer literally to the MAX. I’ve had to wait years for computers to catch up with what I want them to do. From my computer, I control sound effects which enhance and transform the sounds of my electric cello (Yamaha Silent Cello) and trombone (Yamaha Compact Trombone). Simultaneously, I run an entirely different set of programs which enable me to trigger supporting instrumental sounds like extra percussion, synthesizers, loops, electronic drums, and samples.

RD: What programs do you use?

DL: I flip between platforms and between new and old. I’ve been using Guitar Rig (by Native Instruments) since the very first version on both Mac and PC and have tweaked it again continue to fine tune it for use with Electric Cello and Trombone. In my studio, I’ve become comfortable with a workstation running SONAR and on stage I also utilize Ableton Live.

RD: I’m curious about the album art for MILK & JADE. Is that a crime fighting rhinoceros with a jetpack?

DL:
Elephant! My go to designer for all of my recordings is Victoria Gast (Prokaya, Tribeca Film Festival, Heavy.com). She gets it. When we had finished the music, I told her to take Green Day’s Dookie and put it in the future in outer space (of course while listening to the album!) I want people to have fun seeing something new every time they look at the album as we’ll as each time they listen. She nailed it right?!

RD:
In addition to your upcoming run of California shows, I noticed you’re playing the opening ceremonies for the US Open? How did you land that spot? Are you a sports fan?

DL: Although I am not a regular follower of sports I am a fan of extremity, excellence and setting records. I think a lot of the epic size of the sounds on the new MILK & JADE lend themselves to the new types of shows we’ve been adding to the schedule – besides concerts and festivals – like the Dragon Boat Racing Festival we did a few days back at the CitiField Grounds and the upcoming US Open Tennis Tournament where I’ll be opening for Gloria Estefan. The Open came with lots of hard work leading to a small glimpse of serendipitous luck whereby an agent organizing the music for the event literally found us on our YouTube channel.

RD: Of the countless amazing musicians and bands you have performed with (Wynton Marsalis, Yoko Ono, and Kanye West to name a few), which one really gave you that “holy shit, I can’t believe I’m on stage with these guys” feeling?

DL:
The first time I was called to play in a stadium was with Barry White. To this day I remember feeling so (naturally) high as the entire crowd would light up as he would walk out to the intro music!! Nowadays I always aim for that level of excitement. I’m constantly inspired by the musicians I work with such as: MC’s Core Rhythm, iLLspokiNN, MoeRoc, Baba Israel; Keyboardists: Ryuichi Sakamoto, Adam Platt, Jason Lindner; Drummers: Aviv Cohen, Yoni Halevy, Jason Mills; Bassists: Hagar Ben-Ari, Lex Sadler, Yako440 and many more.

RD: Finally, what’s the story behind that necklace you’re always wearing?

DL: My necklace is both good luck and a lifesaver. I was searching for exactly this piece while touring through Europe a while back and eventually found it in the depths of the old city in Tel Aviv, Israel. There was one night a few seasons back when we “over did it” on tour which subsequently resulted in falling asleep in a bathtub (Jimi Hendrix) style with the water running on FULL! Needless to say, after the necklace kept me afloat for a few hours, I realized it’s many levels of usefulness and have stuck with it ever since.

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