Brooklyn soul-funk artist Tomás Doncker may be best known for the decades he has spent playing guitar with “No Wave” pioneers James Chance & The Contortions. Doncker has also worked with legendary acts like Bootsy Collins, Yoko Ono, Madonna, and Bonnie Raitt among other. These days the guitarist and songwriter splits his time between playing with James Chance and leading his own project the True Groove All-Stars. On February 24th Tomás Doncker & The True Groove All-Stars will release the deluxe edition of his acclaimed LP The Mess We Made via his own label, True Groove Records. As one can tell from the title or the especially hard-hitting imagery of the album cover, The Mess We Made is filled with jolting commentary on a time of deep division in America where issues of race are something that we are reminded of all too frequently and in the worst ways.
Channeling his anger and frustration after the Charleston Church Massacre and the highly publicized deaths of Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, and Michael Brown, the politically charged album combines afrobeat and other world music genres with ’60s and ’70s funk and soul to create a unique sound Doncker calls “global soul.” The deluxe edition of The Mess We Made features rerecorded versions of original album tracks as well as five new songs and a live acoustic performance of “Time Will Tell.”
Today Glide Magazine is excited to premiere the revamped single “Some Ol’ Dolls 2017”. The new version of the song is a downtempo jam brimming with punchy horns, phased-out guitars, and Doncker’s smooth vocal melodies. The song even features the banjo riff from Deliverance, hammering home the backwards views of much of the country’s population as Doncker sings “being brown is like being a moving target” before questioning, “Is this what it means to be free?” The commentary hits even harder with a soundtrack of down and dirty funk, letting us know that Doncker is a lyrical and musical force to be reckoned with.
LISTEN:
Tomás Doncker & The True Groove All-Stars release The Mess We Made on February 24. For more music and info check them out online:
Tomás will also be touring as lead guitar player/musical director for James Chance & The Contortions “The Flesh Is Weak” west coast tour:
3/14: SXSW (performing The Mess We Made live for an official showcase)
3/18: San Diego, CA – The Hideout
3/19: Los Angeles – The Echo
3/22: San Francisco – The Knockout
3/24: Portland, OR – The Star Theatre
3/26: Seattle, WA – TBA
