A R T I S T S

For further info and booking inquiries contact: Buzz Rozwell

The Verbrilli Sound
The Verbrilli Sound was created by Don Verbrilli and is as much a philosophy of music as it is a verifiable musical act. The Don is convinced that the purest musical creations are the results of a delicate process where one tries to recognize, welcome, and expand upon the results of unforced creative accidents. With this philosophy in mind, Verbrilli has been hard at work trying to capture these creative moments like so many elusive butterflies, and he has many strange specimens to examine, classify, and ultimately present for your listening pleasure. Website | Soundcloud | Twitter | Verbrilli on CBC Music | Last FM

Portable Planets
A New Channel and Verbrilli Sound dub distortion collaboration. Electric. Electronic. Organic. Synthesized. One part earth. Three parts deep space.
Soundcloud

Oceanphase
Collaborative project of Don Verbrilli (The Verbrilli Sound / Telefuzz), Paul McNeill (New Channel) and Buzz Rozwell. Organic layers of sound. Acoustic, Electric, Electronic.
Soundcloud

Higamos Hogamos
Steve Webster's (ex The Black Neon, Fort Lauderdale) Higamos Hogamos return in yet another incarnation, as ever collaborating with some awesome musicians and some crazy old machines. Their latest work adds a solid muscular funk to the cosmiche sound first heard on the eponymous debut album. At their core Higamos Hogamos is essentially a three piece with Dr. Andrew Robertson on guitar, Whetham "Whethmo" Allpress on drums and Webster on much of everything else. The result is a music that utterly defies classification. Recalling artists as diverse as Can, Parliment, Zappa, Cluster, Material, Ashra and Eno bathing in some cosmic funky slop. They still haven't quite answered their self posed question: "what would happen if you were to mix Tangerine Dream with the Cramps?" But on this evidence the answer just might be out there.
Website | Facebook | Soundcloud | Last FM

One Era
One Era is Philadelphia's Matt Coogan (Solus) + friends. Interpretation and re-interpretation of music past, present and future. Sound experienced in a new context with the help of modern techniques. A collaborative effort, with vocalists, musicians and production specialists. Taking stacks of sample banks and found sounds, merging them with live drums, guitar, bass, and a limitless array of other instrumentation at hand. One Era hopes to put familiar song structures of the past into new light in the digital age.
Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud | Last FM

Gemini Revolution
Vintage tone meets modern touch forming a devastatingly catchy vibe. Cheap keyboards. tape cassettes of Tones On Tail and Simple Minds. Italian invasion of US record stores. drummer obsessed with free jazz. 60's psych nuggets found through crate-digging. D_U_B! British Invasions of US soil from 60s and 80's. Addiction to melody.
Facebook | Soundcloud | Last FM

Gel-Sol
Seattle's Gel-Sol is producer/musician Andrew Reichel, whose dichotomous sound spans from ambient soundscapes to complex, rhythmic electronica, creating a dynamic psychedelic universe with heavy emphasis on improvisation. In 2004, Gel-Sol released the critically-acclaimed Gel-Sol 1104 (aka Music Made For You...And By You, I Mean Me.) on the UK's cult ambient label Em:t Records. Gel-Sol's follow-up album Unifactor, released on Upstairs Recordings, continued the tradition of his unique, amorphous sound collages. The latest release 'IZ' explores some new directions in the orchestral ambient vein.
Website | Last FM

Telefuzz
Telefuzz is the second recording project of Vancouver based musician Don Verbrilli. Deep, psychedelic, dubby, mysterious are all words that will spring to mind when listening to Telefuzz. In the studio it's Verbrilli behind all the controls and instruments with special guest vocalists and musicians regularly being featured. Telefuzz also performs live occasionally, lately as a 2 or 3 piece. Telefuzz live features Verbrilli on guitars and electronics, Paul Milelli on drums and Paul McNeill (New Channel) on bass. A notable gig was the Big Chill festival [UK] in 2006. Telefuzz has 3 albums to date: 'Sleep' [2002], 'The Financiers Of Samsara' [2006] and the latest release, 'The Ovaltine Prophecies' [2009]. Telefuzz also has many tracks licensed to acclaimed electronic music compilation albums from around the world.
Twitter | Telefuzz on CBC Music | Last FM

New Channel
Random sound bites, noise, synthetic washes, guitars, bass, drums chopped up and layered into a smooth, irresistible cut and paste head trip. Welcome to the sonic world of New Channel. Telefuzz bass player and collaborator, Paul McNeill, expertly combines his influences, ranging from 50s era lounge to punk & dub to shoegaze to ambient, into moody, timeless soundscapes. Stay tuned the program has just started.
Soundcloud | Facebook | Last FM | New Channel on CBC Music

Monta At Odds
For the last several years Monta At Odds music has been a story of brothers working it out, as brothers do best. Based in Kansas City, Dedric and Delaney Moore have been producing consistent excellence with 3 albums already under their belt: as 'Monta' on 2005's 'Unsuspecting', and as 'Monta At Odds' on 2008’s 'Gringo' and 2009's 'Outono'. Self proclaimed music manipulators on a quest for stereophonic bliss armed with a variety of electric and acoustic instruments, field recordings, and electronic technology to help release the never ending soundtrack playing in their heads. Recently they've been pushing the envelope on their approach - bringing in additional players to their studio sessions and live shows all to enhance the sonic and visual experience of their self described 'psych-soul'.
Soundcloud | Monta At Odds Website | Facebook | Last FM

Solus
Solus is the production alias of Matt Coogan. He began his journey with Upstairs Recordings in 2002 with the track 'Red Lights' on the acclaimed Blue Light One Compilation. A largely self-taught mixer/recorder whose beginnings trace back to jamming in rock, funk, and improv bands around the Philadelphia area. He turned to the sounds and structures of contemporary based electronic music in the late 90s to achieve autonomous expression. Solus' music is strummed and recorded out of a home base studio on a number of instruments, including guitar, sampler, drums, and wurlitzer. He exploits modern technology to make modern compositions inspired by past styles, such as 70s funk, dub, rock, hiphop.
Website

Drug Submarine
Drug Submarine is a collaborative project by Don Verbrilli (The Verbrilli Sound / Telefuzz), E.D. Swankz, Paul McNeill (New Channel) and Buzz Rozwell. Layers of sound recorded live, cut and pasted, rearranged. Organic, deep and flowing.
Soundcloud | Drug Submarine on CBC Music | Last FM

Kids For Tomorrow
Kids For Tomorrow is Andrew Reichel’s [Gel-Sol] alter ego. Collaborators include Nils Whitmont and William Mempa. On the 2006 release: ‘Deployer EP’ it was Reichel and Mempa behind the controls for 2010’s ‘Nequa’ Reichel teams up with Whitmont. Don’t expect similar sounds to Gel-Sol - in fact just don’t expect anything you’ve ever heard before.
Last FM

E.D. Swankz
E.D. Swankz brings a love of rhythm and melody and a unique blend of experiences in classical piano and jazz and rock drumming to the Upstairs Recordings table. Feast your ears on his well stocked sample bar (don't forget the breakin' bits!). Marvel at the fusion of seemingly disparate ingredients into a rich, tasty sonic broth. Help yourself to seconds, there's lots to go around.
E.D Swankz on CBC Music | Last FM

Buzz Rozwell
At the heart of Upstairs Recordings operations sits Buzz Rozwell, in a comfortable chair. In front of him is the computer at which he creates all things visual for the record label and its artists. A self proclaimed music junkie, Rozwell has always tried to blend his unique visual style with the sounds of modern music. As the resident DJ for the label, he created and held down a popular 2.5 year monthly residency in Vancouver, he has DJd several times at the Big Chill festival [UK] and at the Festinho festival [UK]. Look for occassional Buzz Rozwell mixes posted to this site and soundcloud.
Soundcloud | Twitter | Resident Advisor DJ Page | Last FM