The official title for Coltrane 2 (C2) is Coltrane’s Soul. The name was derived from SoulTrane–one of his early releases featuring the Red Garland Trio. I thought to somewhat reverse the words and alter the meaning a bit, which is the same thing crate diggers do with samples.
A little fyi: The Coltrane Project is a 3 part series of interconnected musical themes, sampled from jazz records and re-organized to suit the needs of the modern day hip hop beat junkie. For some, it’s a sound board to freestyle off of. For others, a history lesson in jazz.
So why Coltrane? I started this project with the intention of learning more about jazz music, and with the intention of incorporating the aesthetic qualities of jazz music into hip hop beats. I really dig the sound of the tenor sax, so when Coltrane crossed my path, I was entranced. I dove deeper into his sound, his band, his life and learned a great deal. You can’t fully understand Coltrane’s music unless you understand the man himself. Putting this project together is both an experiment and experience allowing me to gain a much deeper respect for my craft as a producer and musician, and a higher wisdom and over-standing of the power of sound.
As C1 evolved into C2, I made a few subtle changes to my “formula” that was developed the first time around. I make about 30 or so idea loops for C1, so some of the material I ended up archiving. Those idea loops were developed further, using basic tricks like filtering & pitching. I then went back and listened to additional records,with the loops playing so that I could see how they blended together. There was a lot of needle dropping on C1. I wasn’t necessarily hearing what I wanted in my head, so I just had to experiment. Whereas with C2, I had more of a concept going in, so I knew what records to go to. Things that didn’t make the cut were revamped. I’ll include an outtake or 2 on the album just so you can hear what I’m talking about. As far as the “formula” goes, C1 was fairly laid back. C2 has that same feeling, so if you were to shuffle each release on your listening device, they would blend together nicely.
I also took a look at songs on C1 that resonated the most, such as the song And it Goes Like, and I asked myself what is it about this particular song that makes me want to hear it again? In the case of And it Goes Like, it was the drums, and Nina Simone’s vocals. For each song it was a different element. It was answers to questions like that, which helped me to refine the construct for C2. As a result, you’ll hear some very interesting drum loops. No, I’m not telling you where they came from, so don’t ask! Also, there is 1 major difference. This time around, I’ve incorporated some lyrics into the mix. Not me though. I’ll fill you in later.
Oh, and I wanted to share a sonic treat with you on bandcamp.
As a producer, St Paul is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to his craftsmanship and grasp on the global beat scene. The Philly resident, musician, and community leader was born in Queens NY, earning his hip-hop stripes by break dancing and beat boxing, and banging on lunch tables (which soon became drums) throughout his youth. He also absorbed the early raw sound of hip-hop from the legendary DJ’s Red Alert and Chuck Chillout.
While in college he kept his drumming skills sharp as he started to experiment with various genres of music, and played in Rock, R&B, Hip Hop and Jazz groups. He graduated from Virginia Tech in 2000, having build a solid foundation academically and musically, stayed there as a resident to continue his musical endeavors with 2 hip hop groups Barefoot Sound, and True Sound. Later on a few of the members founded Simply Laced Music Group.
In 2003, shortly after moving to Philadelphia, he founded St Paul Productions, a company geared towards offering after school workshops in music production and songwriting, and quickly becoming a local favorite amongst the youth in the Philadelphia region. His workshops counterbalance the negative energy associated with a majority of today’s rap music and pop culture and bring the youth back into the true essence of hip hop music.
In early 2009, he earned executive production credits, releasing the first global hip hop compilation to be created through Indaba Music. Known as The PaperCha$erz, the mixtape series focuses on showcasing independent rap artists from all over the world. Vol 2 was released recently (4-8-11) and features the legendary Craig G. Outside of Indaba, he’s putting the finishing touches on 2 major projects – Celestial Waters and his followup to The Coltrane Project, ColtraneSoul. In addition he recently inked a single deal with UK based label Carbon Logic.
Future plans include expanding the youth workshop division of St Paul Productions, releasing his 3rd endeavor with Indaba Music, and growing the Simply Laced Music family. 
