Gideon King & City Blog get under your skin with their new single Splinters — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The title track to the N.Y.C. soul/pop collective’s new EP due out Sept. 15, Splinters is a breezy, funk-driven ballad that captures the band at a creative peak, as their years of gigging and studio collaboration meld into some of their finest work to date. “Splinters is one of those rare examples of a song coming out largely as envisioned,” Gideon recalls. “Usually, the chaos of human input and practical realities changes the spark of your idea into an unpredictable flame that either warms you or burns you. But Splinters is different. It’s actually what was in my head, a textural thing with a pop/funk tune lurking in the middle.”
As the founder and primary songwriter in Gideon King & City Blog, Gideon takes inspiration from the streets of his native New York City, and with artistic input from the band’s core collaborators, channels it into vibrantly varied fusion-pop. “I call the band a ‘blog’ because it is an open-ended dialogue with a lot of people contributing their perspectives. When we create, it’s like controlled chaos. We sift through competing ideas, chipping away at the song until it has discernible features. We refine the madness,” Gideon notes, adding, “the music reflects my love of jazz and pop and rock and classical.”
Gideon King & City Blog have explored funk, balmy 1970s classic rock, piano ballads, R&B, soul-pop, and fusion. Gideon writes without a focus on genre, preferring to experiment with complex chord sequences, rhythms, and abstract lyrical patterns. He’s a cleverly poetic lyricist who pens impressionistic songs that don’t rely on linear narratives.
Gideon is a self-taught virtuosic guitarist who has been hailed by as “a musical genius…playing some of the most complex and satisfying music you may ever hear.” His soul/funk/jazz-fusion juggernaut has been favorably compared to Steely Dan blended with Stevie Wonder. The band are regulars at venerable venues such as City Winery, Joe’s Pub and the Blue Note. They also have the rare distinction of being joined by such masterful musicians as John Scofield (Charlies Mingus, Miles Davis), sax legend Donny McCaslin (David Bowie, Bobby McFerrin), renowned “Bayou-soul” singer-songwriter Marc Broussard, and SNL bassist James Genus (Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea), among others.
Originally, Gideon conceived of City Blog as having a fluid membership where he would serve as the common denominator and other musicians would rotate in. His approach was informed by Steely Dan where the right cast of musicians would be summoned on a song by song basis. However, over time the band has coalesced around an eight-person configuration. Gideon King & City Blog features three distinctive vocalists. Caleb Hawley is a noted solo artist who has recorded with Vulfpeck guitar ace Cory Wong. Sonny Step has worked with Ricky Martin, Rihanna and Solange, among others. Ashley Hess is a renowned vocalist who joined the collective in 2021.
The band is rounded out by A-list musicians that include Grammy-nominated drummer Jake Goldbas on drums and percussion (Dave Brubeck, Aretha Franklin, Christian McBride), Jeff Hanley on bass (Will Bernard, Morgan James, Doug Wamble), Zach Mullings on drums and percussion (Lauryn Hill, Billy Porter, AJ Mitchell), and musical director and keyboardist Bryan Reeder (Euan Morto, Chris Norton). “I am basically looking for the best musical athletes to serve the song,” Gideon shares. “Our drummer Jake helped me handpick our lineup and we’ve really become a unit with open communication.”
Check out Splinters above, listen to it on your preferred DSP HERE, sample more from Gideon King & City Blog below, and catch them at their website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
