US muso ALAN EVANS is a busy man. Multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/studio engineer and producer, he works with Soulive, , he’s 1/3 of the Alan Evans Trio, and half of The 7 Day Weekend and also fronts Crushed Velvet and the Velveteers.
For his latest project he’s teamed up with London-based keyboardist and producer Claudio Corona for whom he plays drums on the former’s first solo EP ‘Laying It Down’. The mini album is a collection of four original compositions, all written, arranged, recorded and mixed by Claudio who suggests that the sound they’re trying to create “evokes classic 60s and 70s funk, blending the retro sound with a modern sensibility.” To that end Corona uses a distinctive signature Hammond organ and vintage keyboards including Fender Rhodes, Hohner Clavinet and analogue synthesizers.
The title track is the immediate grabber – funky and head nodding, shades of Brian Auger; while the spacey ‘Apollo 73 is maybe more Jimmy McGriff. Elsewhere classic Stevie Wonder is the reference point on ‘The Expanse’ while the last cut, the ethereal ‘Live Current’, veers towards 60s psychedelia.
Claudio Corona: Laying It Down out now on Vintage League Music
