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Ashok
Jazz / Funk / Other

"Ashok 2003-2008"

South East, London and South East
United Kingdom

Profile Views:  21386




Last Login:  7/19/2008
View My: Pics | Videos

   Contacting Ashok

 MySpace URL: 
  http://www.myspace.com/ashokmusic  

   Ashok: General Info
Member Since1/4/2006
Band MembersLeo, Chris Lane, Flo, Sorana Santos, Morgan Clark- Ward, Jo Silverstone, Amy kelly, John killshaw, Luke Eastop, Ian Tripp, Emre, Vezzio, Gill, Martin Hathaway, Joe Morris, Adrian Hall.
InfluencesRobert Johnson, Charlie Christian, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Jimmy Smith, Rueben Willson, Wes Montgomery, Dave Brubeck, Grant Green, The Meters, David Axelrod, Chopin, Debussy, Villa Lobos, Faure, Tarrega, Beethoven, Bach, Phillip Glass, Cut Chemist, DJ Shadow, Dan The Automator, Del The Funky Homosapian, Jurassic 5, Madlib, MF Doom, J-Rocc, Fourtet, Bonobo, Mos Def, Hitek, Talib Kweli, Cypress Hill, Tribe Called Quest, Deftones, Rage Against the Machine, Nirvana, Ben Harper, Niel young, Nick Drake, Bob Dylan, The Band, Jimmy Hendrix, The Beatles. David Bowie, Roots Manuva, Eazy-E, tom waits. guns n' fucking roses.
Sounds Like Ashok and Leo playing ’Franky Boy’ at The Spike, filmed by Mike Cupcake
Record Labelnone
Type of LabelNone




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   About Ashok
ASHOK: All music written and arranged by Christopher Lane. All lyrics Written by Leo Nathan and Florence Welsh. Recordings produced by Adrian Hall and Christopher Lane. 2003-2008

New video: LEAN FROM THE MIDDLE

All photos by Antonia Lowe & Katje Ford

You should create your own MySpace Layouts like me by using nUCLEArcENTURy.COM's MySpace Profile Editor!

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"BAND OF 2007", Phill Jupitus, BBC 6

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"Like De La Soul gone orchestral Ashok are a bizarre fusion of musical elements..."

Gigwise 2007

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"The debut album 'Plans', from emerging South London jazz/blues/rock band Ashok, is a breath of fresh air for those of us who are beginning to grow tired of the same old cliched songs that the music industry keeps pumping out since the turn of the century."

Matt turner, Rock Louder, 2007

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"Ashok are a band with the talent and chops to take things all the way; a tight sounding band with impressive vocal presence ".

Mike Bond, UKM, 2007

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Ashok-Plans After being prepared for some down and dirty rhyming and a looped drum beat, the fiddle on first track A New Year’s Anxiety came as a bit of a shock. As does the rest of the album. This is a hugely melodic mixture of rhymes, complex super effective rhythms and quality musicianship. The result is Plans- a pleasant surprise of an album. The lilting vocals give a old school jazz/ swing feeling to the songs, and is complimented by the rhyming skills of Leo Nathan brings the tracks bang up to date. Chris Lane’s talented guitar playing also adds another dimension to this melting-pot, in particular on Franky Boy and Always Ashok. To describe the last track, Happy Slap, the word jig might have to be used, whether the band like it or not. The lyrics are instantly memorable and the offbeat guitar keeps up the quick tempo. Separately the three member of Ashok would bring something special to any band. Together they create a brilliant fusion of old and new styles, with influences ranging from Billie Holiday to Dr. Dre to samba rhythms and the Rat Pack. Ashok bring the whole lot together, wrapped up in one album in a class of its own.

Catriona Boyle, Tasty, 2007

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Ashok - Plans, out now ****Comment
Ashok impressed Greenwich audiences earlier this year "I first came across Ashok at Oliver's Jazz Bar in Greenwich and I've been keen to add their music to my collection ever since. The band consisted of [guest vocalist] Flo Welch [now Sorana Santos] and lyricist and rapper Leo Nathan on vocals and guitarist and writer Chris Lane. They are backed by musicians ..o, violin, trombone, saxophone and keyboards which makes for a unique and enjoyable musical experience. Their 11-track album Plans does not disappoint. It begins with the energetic strings of New Year's Anxiety, followed by their current single Lean From the Middle which talks of escaping society's extremes through deep dreams' and hallucinogenic riddles.' The track Sunday introduces a more cheerful, laid-back feel before the album takes a slower, more serious turn with Always Ashok, which describes the creativity behind the musical process. Darkness, anger and confusion dominate Under the Thumb which reflects the diversity and range of the group's songwriting talents. The album closes with the amusing, punchy and ironically cheerful Happy Slap about a woman beating up her boyfriend."

M. Connock, newshopper, 2007

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Ashok to the system

THE New Beatniks are in town, with their Bohemian cabaret of urban poetry and funky jazz. ..Ashok are hard to categorise... there is jazz, funk, soul and hip-hop in the mix as well as echoes of traditional ballads and folk...The talented and eclectic combination of lead and bass guitars, trombone, bongo drum and electric cello worked like a dream. Throughout the set, these diverse elements came together in delightful ways...Looking good and sounding better, Ashok's vibrant music floods the lively crowd in the little basement club."

BY Paul Revell

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MySpace Of The Day Thursday 7th December: Ashok

It's not often I fall for a music act as quickly and passionately as I did for Ashok. Within ten seconds of putting their EP, 'Lean From The Middle', out 18 Dec, on the player (or more specifically, in the CD drive of my PC, as that's how I frequently play these things), I was absolutely hooked. In fact, it was one of those EP experiences that is almost depressing, because I got to the end of the fourth track and was gagging for more. I'm not entirely sure what genre the genre-experts (I hate them, by the way. Pigeonholers) would put this band in, but I can tell you that their end product is jazzy, soulful, funky, delicious. My only sadness is that you can't right now listen to that whole EP - because the tracks on the MySpace site are great, but there are only two of them, and I want you to hear more. More, I say. More. Look out for a forthcoming glowing review of the EP. Fabulous.

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First impressions can be deceptive. On opener ‘New Year’s Anxiety’, Greenwich trio Ashok seem to continue where The Wolfgang Press left off on their cover of the Randy Newman classic ‘Mama Told Me Not To Come’ 15 long years ago. And that’s putting the fun into funk. Nevertheless, Ashok, cover more bases than funky, funky, funky on this their debut album. As hard to categorize as TWP themselves, they also dabble in jazz, soul, country, and hip-hop on Plans. Ambitious doesn’t begin to describe their sound. Building up a reputation on the circuit, Ashok have secured a residency at Oliver’s Jazz Bar in Greenwich. Gigs there are notoriously messy affairs, and not just because of the copious amounts of red wine drunk by the audience. Ashok may be on a label that’s only just recently celebrated its own launch. But it’s a record company with plenty of pedigree, seeing as it was set up by Jack Steven who’s previously signed the likes of X Ray Spex and the Eurythmics. And Ashok themselves come across as cocksure gonnatobes rather than wishy-washy wannabes, combining, as they do, elements of Marxman, Urban Species, Galliano, and The Young Disciples, all aboard the talkin loud merry-go-round at the height of Giles Peterson’s label’s powers. They know how to give good party, but Ashok offer much more than just that. They’re talking loud, all right. And really saying something.:"

By Matthew Hirtes , 2007

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Plans – Ashok

Inspired, ground breaking and fresh. All fairly complimentary words, you’d say? Sadly, though, not ones you’d use to describe the sound of Ashok’s debut album, Plans. Words like vanilla, staid and garden variety would be closer to the mark. The entire Ashok crew, all nine of them, clearly sat down one day to a hearty meal of Jamiroquai acid jazz, Chili Peppers funk, Jill Scott motown and the hippity-hop of ambassadors for righteousness, The Disposable Heroes of Hypocrisy. Once they’d polished that lot off they had a bit of Dolly Parton country for dessert. And then came the impending burp; their album. No-one was safe. On their MySpace they shamelessly name everyone as their inspiration; from Duke Ellington to Beethoven, from Nirvana to Roots Manuva. Obviously they have no new ideas of their own. So their album should be slapped with a ‘rubbish to be recycled’ sticker, right? Wrong. It’s brilliant! From the jazzy Dust Junkys-esque ‘Lean From The Middle’ to the jumpy knees-up of ‘Happy Slap’ this album has fun written all over it. Yet surprisingly the dark lyrics betray the music’s tone by referring mainly to the more serious aspects of life – such as war, death, lost love and spousal abuse. Jolly stuff indeed when combined with infectious fiddles, pianos, trumpets and looped beats. If this album is an indication of how danceable misery can be, then the live show must be a winner."

Christian Rose-Day. Tuesday, 29 May 2007


   Ashok's Friend Space (Top 15)
Ashok has 2109 friends.
 Depa 


 Leo 


 Jo Silverston 


 Ian 


 NeedleandThread 


 Amy Kelly 


 Adrian Hall 


 Morgan Clark-Ward 


 Antonia 


 Grain Media 


 Mike Cupcake (pecknam.com) 


 Foreign Beggars 


 Big Linda 


 emre 


 Sorana 





Ashok's Friends Comments
Displaying 50 of 289 comments  ( View All | Add Comment )
Antenna





Jul 4 2008 4:10 AM

\ LOWER /





Apr 26 2008 1:55 PM


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting


Billy





Apr 14 2008 3:57 PM

Hey guys. Your MySpace has been hacked and we keep getting annoying adverts for a dating agency.
Roma Violenta (new line up !!!)





Apr 22 2008 6:25 AM

hey guys ! How's it going ??
I was just dropping by to let you know that we're playing at The Underworld in Camden (London) this Thursday 24/04.
It would be great if you could pop in so that we can have a pint together. If not, keep on doing great music, lads and we hope we'll share a stage together very soon !
All the best
Roma Violenta
Avarice





Apr 18 2008 9:50 AM

thanks for the add, nice sounds...one

av
QUEENS ENGLISH





Mar 20 2008 5:25 AM

Image and video hosting by TinyPic
Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Peace & Love,

Sherlock & QE
suniti





Mar 18 2008 3:46 PM

good invite
Light Coorporation





Mar 14 2008 11:22 AM

Thanks for the Friendship,

Big Greetings!


LIGHT
COORPORATION




www. myspace. com/lightcoorporation
www. lightcoorporation. com




Pozdrawiamy!

.
NeedleandThread





Mar 7 2008 7:08 PM

Faye Houston





Feb 10 2008 5:22 AM

hey the video is great! really catchy song too :) xxxx
Clare





Feb 2 2008 9:02 AM

Hey guys, new video looks proper wicked, you got a cd or any sort of hard copy out? Don't really do this downloading thing...
NeedleandThread





Jan 29 2008 9:48 AM

hello ello.. heres something..

Needleandthread presents.. {yet another series of} dirty great big nights out.. @ JAMM bar, 261 Brixton road..
running 8pm-4am, £4 before 9pm, (afterwards its £6 / £5 with flyer, or NUS)..

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

this friday first of feb, we have;
THE NEEDLEANDTHREAD LIVE AND WELL ROOM
ExCentral Tempest ~ conscious lyricality, with Kwake on beats & bass..
the Pyrofessional ~ S E-London 5-piece; a blend of hiphop, drum&bass, soul..
ScaredyCats ~ hard-rocking two-tone, ska-punk type-thang..
Jonny Virgo ~ 4-piece who “could start a party in a morgue” - Mike Walsh XFM..
Conrad the Scoundral ~ homegrown grimehop, with a witty twist..

DJ's Mike Cupcake (pecknam.com) ~ mash-ups, party breaks & mad remix's..
King Solomon ~ reggae, roots, and rock n roll..
New Orda ~ good old fashioned, darkside drum n bass..
Mr Hovis ~ with his usual half-baked eclectication..

THE SHORT CIRCUS ELECTRIC CHEERS ROOM
Spazmo ~ theme-step, volt-kilometer and gabba-the-hutt..
Con Brio ~ glitchy goodness for twitchy toes..
X13 ~ bliptek and stompy syntax errors..
Patscan ~ electrocharged socket science..
Jones Deviation ~ from amp to oohmmm..
Uncle Smutfist ~ convicted dex offender at large.

With Tea & Buiscuits in the Sympathy Corner, a Goliath Frog wandering between the rooms, causing mischief, and live art from LuxProdux & Illegal Guff..

myspace.com/ ...
..excentraltempest
..jonnyvirgo
..thepyrofessional
..scaredycats
..conradthescoundral
..djspazmo
..con_brio
..gawaincarey
..patscan
..rhino_plasti
..unclesmutfist
..luxprodux
..shortcircus
..needleandthreaddotorg
Mike Cupcake (pecknam.com)





Jan 27 2008 10:55 AM

Aww, ta for the kind words! So where's this gig in town happening eh?
MUZZA





Jan 25 2008 9:15 AM

Goddamn!!! It's been too long!!!

...It's all good though. I've been spreading some Ashok love in Africa. Seems your music is in their blood too. Haha!

See y'al soon =o)
Hand Hat





Dec 20 2007 2:22 AM

Happy Santa time Ashok!!
Big LOVE X
Mat Lloyd - Poet





Nov 27 2007 10:04 AM

Hello fellow Lazy Gers.

I'm a big fan of your stuff, keep it up. Fanky Boy is my fav, I think?

Mat Lloyd
Ísgerður





Nov 23 2007 10:20 AM

So my "luscious-locked Leo Nathan" - wicked review!!! Congratulations! ;) xxx
Joules Productions





Nov 13 2007 1:33 PM

Hello Ashok,
Love your sound... groove oun....
Joules
Sam





Nov 12 2007 12:43 PM

LOVE Ashok!
Vliot





Nov 2 2007 11:39 AM

KOZEKSA





Nov 1 2007 3:22 PM

thankx Leo for your comment !!! great song here !!
// Caesura || Caesura \\





Oct 29 2007 12:43 PM

cool to be friends . i will perchance see you on the 14th . r x
Ísgerður





Oct 27 2007 12:26 PM

Hey Leo.. just wanted to say thx again for the cd - I..ve got it in my ipod and listen to it in the car all the time! :) xxx
Gary Corrigan





Oct 18 2007 4:50 AM

Thanks for the add!!
My brother Chris Corrigan Went to see
yous a lot when he was in london.
He got me a cd of yours, very gud music. drop by my page if you get a chance and get a listen to my beats.
Cheers GC.
Roma Violenta (new line up !!!)





Oct 16 2007 4:50 AM

hello fellas !

we've just uploaded 3 more tracks on our profile. they were recorded yesterday in 4 hours but I was not meant to tell you that. too late, I've done it.
we're currently looking for gigs, so let us know if you have any slot to be filled in the south east (of England, that is).
have a tremendously fantastic week and keep up the good work !

Roma Violenta
Stella





Oct 13 2007 6:46 AM

Hey! is your album out yet?? i tried to order it on hmv but they didnt have it...

hope everything is going well.

xx
loide





Oct 10 2007 12:09 PM

may good music continue to move you ;-)
John Hendicott





Oct 9 2007 5:07 AM

Hi Ashok, lovely inventive sounds! :) j
Hand Hat





Sep 28 2007 11:57 AM

hey! we don't know this guy below us in the comments but we sure admire his hat! love your business guys x x
Mike Cupcake (pecknam.com)





Aug 30 2007 5:05 AM

hola Ashok, check out pecknam.com - new SE London blog I've set up.

I'm going to start featuring bands & musicians and posting MP3s (either downloadable or preview only). It'd be great to feature one of your tracks, what do you say?

Jim Burgess





Aug 10 2007 11:26 AM

good to meet ya, cracking tunes, really unique sound and clever lyrics. Spot on stuff

Check out me tunes.
Influences The Beatles, The Doors, Kinks, Nirvana, Beach Boys, Hollies, Stone roses, The La's & many more.

keep in touch
Jim B

www.jimburgess.co.uk
SHALIMAR





Jul 30 2007 5:47 AM

THANK YOU FOR YOUR MUSIC
SHALIMAR
WORLD EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC
WWW.SHALIMAR.ES
Source





Jul 20 2007 4:04 AM

hello,

Im going to lovebox this weekend, so im very upset that ill be missing your gig. Hope it all goes well, i have no doubts that it wont.

Much love

Jess xx