B-Side Morning Brew w/ Bij & Niles

Summer break is over! Bijon is back from his family cruise vacation and getting ready to get back to teaching at Berklee College of Music. Niles talks about shedding his brooding artist image with his new music project, The Velveteen Rabbits – a mix of swing, rockabilly, jazz and jump blues. He’s bringing in the horn section, Folks; he’s bringing in the horn section. And of course, Bijon & Niles discuss their upcoming show with their group The Jazz Republic Revue live at The Smith Center in Las Vegas on September 10th.

What is B-Side Morning Brew w/ Bij & Niles?

B-Side Morning Brew with Bij & Niles is a unique radio show broadcasted on 91.5FM KUNV Jazz & More in Las Vegas, pairing music and lifestyle through tasteful consciousness. Live the Lifestyle™. Shows air the first Sunday of each month.

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The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 Jazz and more the University of Nevada Las Vegas or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education

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Good morning and welcome you're listening to beside morning brew would be at Niles had coffee chat chillin on the corner of lifestyle app and music stream on 91.5k would be jazz

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look at you man with a new background in new office all adult like

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half my house got damaged we're replacing the roof but hey, everything happens for a reason. Right? Well, I will say also, let's start with our sip of coffee.

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Oh yeah, that's it

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it's nice to see your Grammy trophy behind you. Did you just get that did it finally come in or how did you

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box kind of thing?

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Oh, you did that so you to do that? Well, I didn't have the proper place for it yet. So you know, now I do your pay. I got to keep up with you man. You got your guitars hanging up in the background and everything and you know your crib your crypt is set up nice man. You know, Casa Casa Thomas's slamming man, you know as as a wonderful

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visitor to Casa Thomas. You've got it dialed in brother. Proud of you, man. Proud of you your office space. It's been like that, like Charlie Brown or something like a little kid. What is going on back there, bro. But now? I like it. It looks good. We're in it. You know? It's time something's. It's time. Yeah. Oh, good for you, man. It's awesome. Thank you. So finally cooling down here a little a little. I don't believe you.

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It is at least in the mornings. It's been

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anywhere from 79 to 83. All thatch that probably feels like cold. People who busted up the parka compare now almost worn my bloody cap and just like this winter here already. Sorry. It's calm. It's tear.

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But it drops below 80. It's winter here. Well,

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we're going through a heatwave here. But we have the humidity to contend with. That just makes it feel that much more oppressive. Yeah, highs in the 90s and stuff like that with 90% Humidity is something a little different. But as you know, I just returned from a family cruise. Oh, yeah.

Unknown Speaker 2:46
Man, I'm on the jazz cruise. This week. I'm going on a cruise my family, everything with us cruise Bijon the Sailor Man. Rog, you know, hey, it's like a floating city. I was on a Royal Caribbean ship. Allure of the Seas, which is one of the top three largest cruise ships in existence. Yeah, and pretty amazing time. You out in family 11 hiring the pirate area right at home. Yeah, I've actually there was a private island that we went to

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which was awesome. It's amazing how wonderfully clean and refreshing the water is the ocean water is there and they had a freshwater lagoon pool type thing and great entertainment, healthy food options, smoothies and stuff like that smoothie bar, along with the standard comfort fair, you know? Yeah, burgers, hot dog shakes, soft serve. And of course, we got the premium drink package, which included pina coladas with a white claw back wow. So what does that mean when you get that package that you can just kind of order anything within that package kind of thing throughout the whole cruise? Like how dangerous is that? What does that means? I can drink everything

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wow all the premium water no matter how many no matter how many unlimited Wow. So you just saddle up to the pool bar and

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get to know the bartenders really well.

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When they start making different drinks I think you would like this Mr. Watson some Yeah. Good time. My mom's 84 So she went with us 11 People Wow.

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As well or no my brothers went with their with their kids and wives and wow, that was great. Really good time. So it's a family give fake? Happy to be back but man Yeah, it was good. Nice to get away for a little bit. Yeah, of course. Now, you getting ready for you're getting your lunch boxes ready and stuff for back to school and your pencils, your number two pencils and stuff like what's going on?

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Yeah, yeah, we got school coming up here about

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Have a few weeks, but everyone's ready to go. And we're just now.

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Sorry, do you have to prepare for any? I mean, do you know what you're coming in with? Or is it just? Oh, yeah, well, so for my schedule at Berkeley, yes, I have a enhanced schedule this year,

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more theory classes and

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going to be working at some other departments, doing professional development and so on, so forth. So yeah, it will be a busy time. It's good to shape young minds and hearts. Yeah. No, that's cool. I was talking that, you know, sketches was here last week. For our listeners, Sam skits. Lemos is our saxophone player here in town. And he also teaches here, and

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he came over to record some stuff. He's like, Man, I gotta get back to school, getting back to school, like in a week, or I think on the fifth or something like, Man, I'm like, why are you dreading it? He's like, I'm just, I've been recording the whole summer. It's been so fantastic. You know, but then he goes, but then we have a break. And at the end of September, I'm like, so you're only going back for a month and you got like a two or three week break. So anyway, yeah. So he's doing the Lord's work, though. He's teaching them little, little children's. Yeah, true. Yeah. That's a whole different level of Yeah. Yeah. So you deserve sainthood? Actually, I think.

Unknown Speaker 6:33
Yeah, yeah, man. No, it's good. Well, speaking of skits in the gang, I mean, and back to heat for a second when you were here a couple weeks ago, two and a half weeks ago now, wasn't that? You know, we had our little pop up show at the dispensary Lounge, which was, which was fantastic. You know, I don't think you and I really knew what was going to happen kind of idea. We haven't done that show in a long time. So it was a great venue that you know, the dispensary Lounge is a iconic venue, jazz venue here that's been around for several decades. Yep. Run by the same proprietor. And the staff was fantastic. Yeah, it was geison door for who curates the whole curator thing and did a great job of putting it together and making sure we were all taken care of. And it was a good time, we got to make some new fans and play for some new people and really well received. So kudos to the dispensary lounge and all their staff are making helping make it a great show. And we played well to a lot of fun. So we played well. Yeah, it was. And which was cool. Because the telltale sign for me always just the rehearsals, although it's a bit of a misnomer, because sometimes we've had them I mean, terrible rehearsals, and you and I walked out of there going, what are we doing? And the show always turns out great. You know? Absolutely. You know, which is cool. But yeah, it was, that was a fun time. And at that time, I mean, over there in that area. And we're early lives. I was 121 degree days, dude. Nuts. Yeah. But nonetheless, we had a wonderful time crowd was great packed house, which was amazing. Speaking of packed house, we got a show coming up. We do but let's get into it in segment two. Fair enough. Fair enough. So you so well, I will say before we get into the details of that concert, when you're working on a brand new song to introduce for that evening. So you've been listening to you were telling me a lot of Roy Hargrove right? Roy Hargrove was very influential trumpet player died way too soon. Was in your 50s or something like young right? Even though he was making metal? Of course, or 40s? Yeah, yeah, definitely missed missing his impact. Definitely. He worked with a lot of younger people coming up in the jazz and music and arts world. And he's sorely missed. One of the groups that he had that really influenced me kind of building off of the Freddie Hubbard Miles Davis when they did their ECM and more contemporary jazz offerings. Is Roy's group. Rh factor. Just really great stuff groove vocals horns less old kid. Funky Yeah, straight up funky groove. Yeah. Yeah, this song I think we're going to introduce to the audiences off his album strength or EP strength. And this is the title track off that EP, entitled strength. This is Roy Hargrove.

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I see that like straight although I allow myself to introduce myself.

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Here we go.

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too. Yeah, take two. So one of the artists I've very influential in my playing is a trumpet player named Roy Hargrove, and this is his group Rh factor. My favorite tunes is a tune entitled strength and it's the title track off his EP and title string. This is Roy Hart groves break

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listening to it here on beside morning brew with Bayesian Niles, you're on 91.5k u and v jazz and more

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Welcome back. That was Rh factor, Roy Hargrove, the song entitled strength. And man, I dig that ending just the way they all just kind of fade away. Or crumble away somehow, you know what I mean with the different rotation? I mean, that's the jazz Republic. Standard ending. It is. We are king of the vamp fade out. Yeah.

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Groove. Yeah, it's probably why I like it. Now that you say that? I love it. But yeah, wow, man.

Unknown Speaker 15:45
You put a button on, you put a button on something. And it's kind of like too abrupt? Well, that's the thing. You know, for longest time for the last number of years, people just ending songs on an album. And I never got into that trend. I don't think it's cool at all. Unless the song genuinely calls for that. Like, you just got to end it. But for me, come on when we listen to records. And I'm sure a lot of our listeners would agree. When the song fades out, it rides off into the sunset. You know what I mean? It kind of leaves. It leaves room for imagination, like, where are they going? And you know, sometimes when the musicians would do something quirky, and you can barely hear it when it's like just coming off. Absolutely. It's like engages the audience much more closely. And let's face it, that hook is groovin. People just want to groove to that hook. Yeah. Yeah. Love. Yeah. So cool, man. And it's so you. I mean, it makes sense that you're listening to this right now and being inspired again, with this in this direction, because we all know and love you for big band as well. So this other side of you the flip side of you, this is great. So I look forward to hearing what you're coming up with, with I'm sure another single name, title. Of course, I am the king of the single man, who you are. That's great. Well, you've got some project going on right now. But really fun. I know.

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I'm looking forward to contributing some horn lines to some of this music in the direction you're taking Memory Lane, the music of our youth that we grew up listening to, you know, some of the swinging, what would you call it? Well, so what would what would you call this hybrid because you're all about hybrid music and not being pigeonholed into necessarily one genre. So what would you call this hybrid? I'll let you describe it. All right. Well, you know me in that I always live musically speaking, I live in the Pangea period. You know, I'm saying,

Unknown Speaker 17:42
You know what I mean, there's, there's no borders, bro. There are no borders, everything's one. But in terms of this particular style, you know, with the project, I was starting the beginning of the year, I went down, rockabilly, more rockabilly swing kind of thing, right, which is a trio. Then I realized after listening to some of the resurgence of swing, guys, like Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and cherry poppin daddies, and squirrel Nut Zippers and royal crown review those bands that did the resurgence of swing back in the 90s, into the 2000s, I realized, I'm like, Man, this is exactly what I'm doing with the with the rockabilly stuff with the exception of horns, you know, I mean, you put it you put a two or three piece horn section all of a sudden, you know, you're, you're leaning into the swing world, so to speak, which is weird, even say, I don't know if that's the case, but it feels that way. You know, I don't know. But it's a hybrid of those things, which is fine. It is. Yeah. So it's not a straight swing. We've talked about that, even as I was listening to the tracks. Yeah, it's definitely more of a shuffle like you said, Yeah. Which is more rockabilly shuffle. exists, right with with a bit of swing. A lot of not all that stuff is straight. So yeah, so my definition of slang is different than yours, obviously.

Unknown Speaker 18:59
But there's elements of it in for sure. Absolutely. Yeah. But the thing for me is, like, it's so much fun. And you know, when we were rehearsing for our other show recently, I told you, like, Man, I'm just bored, bored right now. And I didn't understand what that meant. And I realized for me later, that I think I've just been bored of doing the same thing. And it's like me getting on a bicycle. And just I know exactly, you know, it's just so smooth and easy. I feel like I don't have to think kind of on autopilot. And I think what I meant by that being bored was just that being on autopilot. And I'm, like, you know, even with the guitar playing. And so with this kind of music, whether it's rockabilly swing, or a tip of the hat to that, those genres, it's forcing me to look at music differently and forcing me to play guitar differently and even sing differently. You know, it's like I'm singing again, you know, not whispering and which is awesome, by the way, and you're gonna be playing guitar and my stuff on our upcoming show. So now that

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you know, and long overdue, yeah, and the cool thing too, is

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Jake, I'm looking forward to, you know, for years, it's like I have split music personalities as well like you do, but like, I'll kind of hide myself behind a character so to speak, and I'll maybe play it up a little bit more than I need to. And I don't want to do that anymore. I'm in a place right now in my life where I was telling skits when he was recording some some horns. Like, I just want to laugh. I just want to have a smile on my face have a good time, put a smile on listeners faces. You know, I'm not always the brooding artist. You know, you know me well that I am but like, not all the time. You know, which is awesome. Yeah, so I want to show myself and to the audience that there's what you guys see my close friends. The fun side of me and not not being so serious all the time within music. So I know that the the name of your project is the Velveteen rabbits Is that correct? Kinda like the store what what influences kind of so you said listen, squirrel Nut Zippers, cherry poppin daddies, like what? What are we going to be? You know what the look? Yeah, so what would be a song that I would listen to or that we can share with our listeners to kind of give a nod or give ya a hint of what what's to come? Yeah

Unknown Speaker 21:19
yeah, I had been listening a lot to also there's a great song it's an older songs about 1010 plus years old by cherry poppin daddies and that tune is called I Love American music you're listening to beside morning brew with Bayesian Niles on 91.5k When V jazz and more

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schooling every chance I get

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I get that wrong when I'm sorry

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I was born and bred

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wirelessly

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up all this data as though

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yeah my inside

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when that 9000 year

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landing again Sam on American news and

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play it again

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play it play it again Sam own American music

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play it again Sam I love American

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rock and

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I save your record and of that discharge feel hand

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Collins and Carrie and my brother's

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death and my scale starts showing with blasts smash my fingers down own the truth and still no

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play it again. Sam all American news

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Sam I need American news.

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Play it again. Sam I want American

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plan against

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Me.

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When

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at maski stop showing with more Smash. bangers down the truth and still.

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Play it again. Sam on American news ag

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land. Play it again Sam.

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Play it. Play it again Sam on American news egg

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Let's Play It Again, Sam.

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music

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music

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music

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news

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that was I love American music by cherry poppin daddies, you're listening to beside morning brew with beige and Niles on 91.5k. When V jazz and more, man, you know what I like about that? Of course, is the horns. Yeah. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker 25:45
That was the epitome of that genre.

Unknown Speaker 25:50
With using those horns to kind of create that, that energy and the swing and

Unknown Speaker 25:57
you know, definitely I look forward to hearing your voice with your original music. doing that. It's gonna be awesome. Well, ring is when I hear that stuff. And again, I know your your wheelhouse really is Big Band. Right? So, but when I hear these, these horns on all those different bands, even though it's just a three piece horn section, it sounds to me. Like what a big band would to? Oh, absolutely. No, no, definitely. Yeah, yeah. And we're gonna have we're gonna have three horns. Yeah, we're gonna have three horns at the Yeah. Our upcoming show. Yeah, I know. You got upset at me recently. I'm like, I don't think we need to trombone though. Like I'm like the trombone sounds like a trumpet anyway. Well,

Unknown Speaker 26:41
you've known me for several decades and you have the audacity to say now trombone sounds like a trumpet. Now I know. That's okay. I know. What was the other one twisted, man. It also needs the mute. Nao, what's that toilet? Totally bold thing. You guys do?

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The plunger.

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I will have all the mutes. I'm actually good. Yeah, good. Let's go and tell the people again about our upcoming concert. Jump in. So we're really looking forward to sharing all this new music with all of our listeners and beyond. At our upcoming show with the Smith Center on Tuesday, September 10. Going to be an amazing show. Featuring. Yeah, I was gonna say we got a lot of a lot of special guests on this show. So yeah. Linda Woodson, of course will be singing with us. Yeah. The Duchess Miss Laura. Laura Schaefer will be joining us again. Yeah. And artistic curator of the dispensary lounge. Mr. Guney guyson. Guava. Will you guys on the offer will be

Unknown Speaker 27:49
tuner to piano. What about what?

Unknown Speaker 27:53
Drummer? While? Ah, yes, we've got wild Douglas coming in on drums. Yeah. Now he plays with he's Barry Manilow who's Barry Manilow, Barry Manilow is Jamberry mandelieu, very mellow.

Unknown Speaker 28:09
And along with lots of other amazing artists as well. So looking forward to having him contribute his musical talents. And the name of the show is we're calling it we're returning to the Smith Center. We're calling it the jazz Republic review. And because we have had the privilege of over the past seven, eight years of being in existence, really working with so many of the great musicians in the community. And we wanted to showcase those collaborations at an amazing venue with original music once again. We're looking forward to an amazing, an amazing event, an amazing concert at Smith Center. So as always,

Unknown Speaker 28:50
we'd like to thank our listeners for being there for us. Once you because you're great at closing this out so well. There's so many people like to thank but not the least of which is k one V 91.5, jazz and more for always being a stalwart media partner. Of course high note roasters, we are coffee drinkers, and we really appreciate them keeping us caffeinated.

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And of course,

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of course,

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we thank you the listener, we encourage you to bring out your friends and and share an amazing evening of music with us at the Smith Center. We invite you to go to the Jazz republic.com which links directly to our Smith Center page to choose your seats. It's going to be a stone cold group. Have a great Sunday everybody. You've been listening to beside morning brew with beach and Niles chillin on the corner of lifestyle app and music stream on 91.5k You and we get

Transcribed by https://otter.ai