Nu Spirit Helsinki

Biography

Nuspirit Helsinki is a multi talented Finnish collective of DJ's, producers, and musicians that has ascended to the forefront of the burgeoning European nu-jazz scene on the strength of their peerless productions for Guidance, Jazzanova/Compost and Ubiquity. The group was conceived in 1998 by founding members Tuomas Kallio and Hannu Nieman (a.k.a. DJ Ender) who enlisted a core group of Helsinki's finest musicians to develop a dynamic 21st century big band sound informed by a wealth of jazz, funk, soul, afro, and Latin influences. Equally inspired by cutting edge hip hop, nu soul, broken beat, two step and drum and bass sounds, Nuspirit's musical mission is to fuse live organic instrumentation with warm, dubby electronic textures to produce soulful and sophisticated music that can be enjoyed on or off the dancefloor. The group's barrier breaking debut single "Take It Back" was released on Guidance in March 1999 and has since attained cult classic status in both deep house and eclectic DJ circles. Refusing to limit their sound to any specific sub-genre, the band took things to the next level on their red hot and relentlessly funky follow up single "Makoomba Breaks," combining masterful musicianship with sizzling percussion to create this sultry afro-beat classic. The single includes an extended re-edit of "Afro-Cuban Sunshine" the standout track from Guidance's acclaimed Mundial Muzique collection which was charted by all of the right DJ's and embraced by a cross section of electronic and traditional world music fans across the planet. Changing directions once again, Nuspirit dropped their amazing "Montana Roha Jazz" EP on pioneering German label JCR in the winter of 2001 to a rapturous response. A tribute to the band's vision and versatility, this orchestral jazz dance masterpiece elevated Nuspirit Helsinki to the forefront of the blossoming European nu-jazz movement alongside pioneering artists like Jazzanova, Incognito, Four Hero, and Kruder and Dorfmeister. Enlisting the support of the musicians that performed on their previous singles, Nuspirit took their big band show on the road in the summer of 2001, dazzling crowds at Jazz and Electronic music festivals across the continent with their forward thinking fusion of accomplished musicianship and relentless dancefloor energy. After completing their tour, the band retreated to its Helsinki studio to record their eagerly anticipated debut album which features contributions from an all star cast of vocalists, including: Naked Music's resident diva Lisa Shaw, Brooklyn bred nu-soul chanteuse Nicole Willis, acclaimed Chicago spoken word artist Chuck Perkins, and Nuspirit's resident blue eyed soulstress Ona Kamu. The end result is an exquisite long player fusing smokey live jazz funk arrangements and melodic nu-soul grooves with dark undulating broken beat rhythms to propel the Blue Note jazz sound safely into the future.
Due for release in May 2002, Nuspirit's eponymously titled debut album is already in regular rotation on Gilles Peterson's seminal World Wide Radio Program and is receiving maximum support from a host of taste making DJs, including: Jazzanova, Thievery Corporation Norman Jay, Patrik Forge, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Dr. Bob Jones, U.F.O. and many more. The group has already been featured in front line music industry publications Straight No Chaser, Jockey Slut and XLR8R and have recently applied their midas touch to remixes for Nicola Conte, Victor Davis, and Atjazz. The Nuspirit DJ team of Ender, Eppu, and Lil Toni will be touring North America and Europe in May and the full twelve piece band will hit the road this summer in support of the album. Nuspirit Helsinki is poised to permanently alter the urban soundscape, so do yourself and sign up for the revolution now!


Core Band Members:

Tuomas Kallio principle producer
Hannu Nieminen (a.k.a. DJ Ender) founding member.
Kim Rantala (a.k.a. Kasio)
Toni Rantanen (a.k.a. DJ Lil Tony)
Eppu Helle (a.k.a) DJ Eppu


Musicians:

Abdissa "Mamba" Assefa Percussionist (from Ethiopia)
Okou Vocalist from France
Teppo Mäkynen Drums (one of the most accomplished drummers in Finland credits has previously recorded for Blue Note)
Daddy Ous Singer (from Gambia)
Jukka Eskola Trumpet & Fluegelhorn (one of the most talented young Finnish jazz instrumentalist, member of Warp Recording Artist Jimi Tenor's band)
Jay Kortehisto Trombone (also part of Jimi Tenor's / Nicole Willis' bands)
Aleksi Ahoniemi Sax/Flute
Joel E. Terry Flute/Sax (from Cuba)
Jukkis Kiviniemi Electric bass
Anssi Växby Acoustic bass
Erick Jon Cuban vocalist
Eero Koivistoinen Legendary Finnish Saxophonist, appeared on Motana Roja Jazz release for JCR/Compost
Jukka Eskola Trumpet

Discography:


Nuspirit Helsinki Take It Back Guidance Recordings 12"
Nuspirit Helsinki Colors of My Mind Guidance Recordings 12"
Nuspirit Helsinki Afro Cuban Sunshine from the Guidance album
Mundial Muzique
Nuspirit Helsinki Makoomba Breaks Guidance Recordings 12"
Daddy Ous Hard Like a Rock Guidance Recordings 12"
Nu Sound Collective Diana Park Nights From the Ubiquity album
New Latinaires Volume 2
Freestyle Man Que Domingo Remix Saako 12"
Nicola Conte Jet Sounds Remix forthcoming Schema 12"
Victor Davis Runaway Train Remix forthcoming JCR 12"
Yoko Ono
Astor Piazzolla
Manu Dibango


Select Compilation's featuring Nuspirit Helsinki's music:


Various Artists Afro-Vibes SPV Germany
Various Artists Brazilelectro II SPV Germany
Various Artists Miles Ahead Groovetech UK
Various Artists Private Lounge Inca Productions France
Various Artists Impala Lounge Wagram France
Various Artists Supperclub United Recordings-Holland
Various Artists Playground 3 XXX Records Austria





Nuspirit Helsinki DJ Team:


Lil' Tony

For more than a decade, Lil' Toni has been an instrumental figure in the Finnish club scene. Toni got his start in show business rocking underground warehouse parties back in the day and is now an internationally acclaimed DJ and owner of Kerma and Soda, two of Helsinki's top clubs, which maintain the positive vibe and uncompromising party spirit upon which the city's scene was founded. According to the man himself:

"I'm glad to say we have been pretty successful in fighting back the invasion of this hyper-commercialised 'superclub' thing. I find the legacy of the early disco and house/acid scene too precious to be sold out cheap. As a DJ and promoter I feel there's a certain responsibility towards the crowd that shouldn't be taken too lightly. Selling over-expensive club t-shirts at the expense of the quality of the music just isn't my cup of tee."

As a DJ, Lil Toni has travelled all over the world and back, electrifying crowds with his open minded musical attitude, his eclectic sets, and his 8,000 deep record collection. Toni's full course musical menu of jazz, disco, Latin, soul, reggae, old school electro, and rare groove breaks served with his impeccable sense of timing can be witnessed every Thursday evening at his legendary "Talkin All That Jazz" night @ Kerma. Toni's repertoire also encompasses the modern musical sounds of deep house, nu-jazz, Detroit techno, West London broken beats, and jazzy drum and bass. While always in search of the perfect beat, Lil Toni admits that "There's nothing like your first love and house music was that for me. The feeling that a well laid down deep house set generates in a club is hard to exceed." A true renaissance man, Toni recently made his successful debut as an interior designer at his nightclubs Kerma and Soda, a move undoubtedly inspired by his years of global travel. After all these years, Lil Toni's pioneering contributions to Finnish club culture have started to pay off in a big way. Helsinki is now widely recognized as a thriving center for world class nightlife and quality, innovative electronic music.




The List of Guest DJ's at Toni's Clubs Includes:
Norman Jay, Keb Darge, Patrick Forge, Jazzanova, Kiyoto Jazz Massive, Rainer Trüby, Joe Claussell, Slam Mode, Kevin Yost, Cosmo, Dave Hill, Dixon, Les Gammas, Fauna Flash, Seiji, Kabuki, Alex Dallas, U.F.O. Peshay, London Electricity, Karminsky Experience, Raw Deal, Phil Asher, Pete from Soul Jazz, Nicky Holloway, Russ Dewbury, Bouggie Solitairre, Fuzz Against Junk, Faze Action, Mad Mats, Espen Horne, TeeBee, Daniel Best, Abacus, Jimbo, Michael Rutten, Emmanuela De Luca, Pat Heart, Alan Brown, Bob Jones etc

Select list of venues where Toni has headlined:

Kontrapunkt festival, Zagreb 2001; WMF, Berlin 1999; Kaleidoscope, Jazzanova-night Kuppel, Basel 2000; Blue Note, Bern 2000; Jazz House, Freiburg 1999; Jazz Keller Tubingen 2000, Bern. Batofar Cake&Milk Sunday afternoon, in Paris 2001; Moosejuus, Oslo 2000; 1997 Tresors 5 years Anniversary party; Berlin Sunday School Opening Party at Nylon; every night at "Talkin all That" in Kerma, Helsinki


Ender

Ender caught the DJ bug in the late 80's when the first wave of acid house crashed on the shores of Finland. Embodying the DIY spirit that defined these times, Ender joined forces with close friend and co-promoter,JA-Jazz, (a.k.a. Pepe Deluxe) and organized a string of memorable warehouse parties that help jump start the Finish electronic scene. As Ender fondly recalls:

"Those were 100% chaotic experiences. While we lacked proper equipment and the knowledge of what this new electronic music was really all about, we managed nevertheless to pull these events off with a lot of enthusiasm and a little bit of skill."

A few years later, Ender founded the legendary Club Deep which set the standard for the evolution of Helsinki music scene and established him as one city's most respected DJ's. Ender currently has a residency at Kerma, one of the top clubs in Scandinavia, and does regular guest spots at venues all across Europe. A self described techno head at heart, Ender's sets nonetheless encompasses many different styles of music including house, funk, jazz, and Latin music and he steadfastly refuses to be pigeonholed into one genre, believing that "categories belong to the shelves of a record shop, not the dancefloor". While his first love is Djing, Ender is also a talented producer and teamed up with partner Marko L. to found Function Recordings in 1995 to provide an outlet for Finnish instrumental electronic music.


Eppu

Unlike most DJs, Eppu actually began his career as a musician, playing keyboards and guitar in various bands from 1991-1995 before taking up the wheels of steel. Continually unimpressed and disappointed by the various jocks who warmed up the crowd at his band's gigs, Eppu decided he could do a much better job himself and temporarily traded in his guitar for a set of decks. Turned out to be a wise career move. After spinning acid house, jazz, funk, and disco at local student parties Eppu soon found himself headlining a string of successful club nights in Helsinki. In 1997, Eppu moved to Paris where he spun regularly at club's such as Pekin and Fait d'hiver. After returning to Finland, he secured a residency at Club Nuuti in Lahti which lasted for two years and began doing guest spots at Helsinki clubs, such as Soda and Kerma, where he eventually joined forces with the Nuspirit posse. Eppu relocated to Helsinki in late 1999 and began working full time with Nuspirit in the studio as well as playing in the band and assuming a DJ residency at Kerma. "Eclectic but not hectic" Eppu's DJ sets encompass anything from Latin jazz to drum and bass depending on crowd and the vibe of the club.

Kasio

Nuspirit producer, DJ, and keyboardist extraordinare Kim Rantala a.k.a Kasio has been making music for over 17 years. Kasio is a member of Helsinki based mega band Giant Robot Posse (www.giantrobot.fi) who are signed to EMI Finland and whose most recent single off their "Dancehall Dominator" album climbed to number nine on the country's pop chart in March 2002. Alongside partner in crime DJ Anna S of Breakin Boundaries (www.radiohelsinki.net) has been spinning records and organizing clubs for the past six years. Currently, the two are the brains behind Club Bundolo, which is widely recognized as one of the best venues in Helsinki. Kasio lists his main influences as progressive jazz-afro-brasilian-funk-roots-ragga-dancehall-nuschool/old school hip hop-break/broken beats and deep house.