MFSB

Professor Groove

( myspace.com/professorgroovewefunk , www.wefunkradio.com/about/press )

MFSB founding member Professor Groove began honing his skills mixing funk on Montreal radio station CKUT in 1996. Fast forward through hundreds of radio show sessions, club residencies including Montreal's long-running Rockdeep Tuesdays, invited gigs in the US and Europe, and a decade of digging ever-deeper into the rich earth of funk music—in 2007 the funk flows stronger than ever through the Prof's fingers.

Keeping the raw, compelling sounds of 70s funk front and center, Professor Groove brings in connections with soul, jazz, disco, hip-hop, African and latin grooves. The radio show WEFUNK , now in its 11th year on CKUT, has attracted a wide, devoted international audience through the internet. On WEFUNK, Professor Groove and partner DJ Static meld four decades of Black American music, selecting rare and underground tracks alongside influential innovators like James Brown, Kool & The Gang, Eric B & Rakim, and Nas. Spinning live Professor Groove brings the same touch, equally comfortable keeping the dancefloor on fire, laying down breaks for b-boys & b-girls, or bringing a warm vibe to a lounge setting. Any way you cut it—Groove's got funk for days.

CheebaCheebaKid

( myspace.com/cheebacheebakid )

Born at 4:20 PM PST on 4/20/1970, MFSB founding member Cheeba's ear was shaped by that decade of dancin' decadence. Around age 12, the doors of his musical perception were kicked open by the introduction of dub, Kraftwerk and punk. Hearing Grandmaster Flash's "The Message" a year later was like an exploding-tip po-mo bullet to his brain and sealed the hip hop deal for life. After 10 more years of musical ramblings through jazz, reggae, hip hop, techno, rock, country, funk, soul and world music, he was befriended by a DJ who told him it was a shame he didn't share his wealth of music with more people. He gave spinning a shot and has been hooked ever since.

Over the last 15 years, his gigs have numbered in four-figures, ranging from raves and clubs to resto-lounges and stints on the radio as well. He's played throughout Western Canada and since moving to Montreal in 1999 has held a handful of residencies and spun at spots such as Luba Lounge, Blizzarts, Kola Note, Casa del Popolo, Kunta, Salon Daome, Les Bobards, Blue Dog, MAI, NEST, Boa and many late-night, sweaty loft parties. Perhaps best-known in the 514 for his role in the Rockdeep collective, his deep crates and ingrained love for any type of music with soul sees him connect-the-dots to take you on detours through side streets and back alleys while traveling the main route of funk, house, disco and hip hop. Every set's a trip with the CheebaCheebaKid.

KOBAL

( myspace.com/djkobal )

Jerome Decis (a.k.a djKobal) has been a household name in Montreal for the last 12 years spinning records of the rarest labels to the crowd pleasing anthems of funk. At times he has been pegged as a funk deejay ,but once you try to imagine yourself in his portal, you’d be mesmerized with his versatile style of various genres of old and new sounds. Without any contestation, he is probably one of the hardest working deejays in the nation. I myself have witnessed copius amount of times he’s spent digging in record shops and household basements,not too mention 9 hour sets at the ever so popular Funk nights at e-Cube in Giffrin Town Montreal. He has spun alongside popular acts such as Funkadelic and the P-Funk All-Stars, Roy Ayers ,Family Stone,Sharon Jones, Budos Band,Lee Fields, Sugarman 3,Keb Darge, Quantic, Mr.Scruff,Kool Keith, Dj Vadim, Moonstarr, and “the Goods” Crew, and many more

As a founding member of MFSB and co-owner of the label “AFRO KATS”, Decis once again shows his work ethic and passion for the music we all call FUNK. He has a good sense of rhythm depicting some of the most unusual breaks which has captured an audience globally, hitting numerous charts and popular magazines, such as STRAIGHT NO CHASER, and various underground readings, which is knowledgeable for the beginner who needs to do his/her research into the realm of left-field sounds. A Noisemaker in an eclectic scene filled with passionate collectors, there’s no denying who is the king of digging. Just go and ask any of the record owners in town, or better yet any of the new local record retailers who have just appeared on the scene. Oddly enough, he has just begun. “Y” DNA

Andy Williams

( www.goodsradio.blogspot.com )
Andy grew up in Derbeyshire, UK with obligatory Sunday family listening sessions fostering a resentment towards Jazz since it was such a fixation with his folks. His rebellion was through mainstream radio and TV, becoming a big fan of Top of the Pops but as years went by, it became clearer that it was all relative and Jazz was a maternal hub. Emigrating to Clarendon, JA in 1974 and living there until 1976 was an eye-opener. His horizons were further expanded by the Soul, R’n’B, Funk, and early Disco carried by Miami broadcasts, not to mention late-night outings with Uncle Clive to hear Mr. Brown’s sound system in Blackwoods showcasing the hottest deejays of the period with selectors spinning wax hot off the press!

His arrival in TO in ‘76 looked promising for a high school rookie heavy into b-ball and nyabinghi, being the year of both the Montreal Olympics and Bob Marley’s “Babylon by Bus” tour. Uncle Earl passed the leftovers to him after refilling his club’s jukeboxes and he felt instantly at home with the abundance of West Indians in his area. His years at Parkdale Collegiate, with its rich ethnic mix, were crucial in shaping his musical preferences and the Jazz journey continued with activity in alternative radio for over 20 years. Most memorable was a trip to West Africa to document the Griots, from which he returned nourished and eager to hear various polyrhythmic sounds from diverse cultures.

Having spent countless hours, days and months archiving music from all over the world on every medium from audio cassettes to digital video over the last 3 decades, Andy’s wealth of musical knowledge and material is immense. It is this intimate relationship with the pulse of life that has seen him sharing the decks at clubs and festivals all over Europe and in Canada and the US with luminaries like Mr. Scruff, Quantic, Keb Darge, Nickodemus, Rainer Truby and Bugz in the Attic, all while holding down innumerable Montreal residencies and parties, including legendary monthly The Goods with co-resident Scott C. A professional educator by trade and a founding member of MFSB, Andy continues to school the masses while they shake their asses!