Ryukyu Underground

Ryukyu Underground (see also 琉球アンダーグラウンド) is Keith Gordon and Jon Taylor. The two met in Okinawa Japan in the fall of 1998, both shared an interest in Okinawan music, contemporary dance music and an occasional night on the town. Strangely, on their first meeting both told each other of a vision they each had individually had, to create a musical project which incorporated elements of the Okinawan sound into contemporary electronic and dance music. Ryukyu Underground is the result: a combination of traditional melodies and textures of Okinawan music mixed with elements of ambient, drum'n'bass, hip-hop, jungle, dub, and electronica. The result is a musical champuru - the Okinawan word for mixture, so important in the culture and society of contemporary Okinawa - but a champuru with a decidedly modern sound and a club sensibility. They signed to Tokyo based Respect Records and released their debut CD in the Spring of 2002. In the following 7 years they have released 3 more studio album and a remix album with remixes of their tracks by such artists as Karsh Kale, Junkie XL, Da Lata and Kid Loco. They also contributed a track to the ‘Rough Guide to Okinawa” compilation CD released through World Music Network and have appeared on two Buddha Bar compilations They have remixed tracks for Miyazawa, Karsh Kale, Yuri Chika and Uru amongst others, . They have also composed music for a series of educational DVDs. Taken from Artists Facebook Souljazz, Inc. DJ Keith Gordon and Jon Taylor are Ryukyu Underground, a duo that combines traditional Okinawan folk music with ambient, trip-hop, dub, and drum'n'bass. Along with other artists from Okinawa like Nenes, Rinsho Kadekaru, and Misako Ohshiro, the fusionist duo's "Tinsaga Nu Hana Dub" appeared on 2001's The Rough Guide to the Music of Okinawa. A year later, they followed with a self-titled full length on Riverboat Records. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide Taken from Answers.com Visit the homepage of Ryukyu Underground for more info: http://www.ryukyu-underground.wwma.net/ Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.