Shlomi Cohen to Release Debut Album “Breather”

Get in on the ground floor of an exciting debut album of scintillating world music by sax player Shlomi Cohen.

REMINDER: Kickstarter is all or nothing. That means if we don’t hit our goal, the project does not get any of the money raised so far. It also means you will not get charged. Thank you for your support!

Birth of an Artist

I was born in Jaffa, a diverse neighborhood of Tel Aviv, Israel where I was exposed to musical influences from my surroundings, as well as from my Moroccan and Yemeni families. Both my father and grandfather were musicians, and growing up, music was always a part of my life. As a child I spent many hours at the piano learning all the basics of music and practicing. My piano lessons were focused on classical music but at home, after finishing my piano assignments I loved to listen to the radio, playing by ear all my favorite songs. These hours at the piano created a firm foundation for my future as a musician and led to my joyful discovery of the saxophone at the tender age of 11.

Influences

As an adolescent I attended the Tel Aviv School of Arts where I was exposed to all kinds of music. After school I played with the Youth Orchestra and took lessons from a private teacher who first introduced me to jazz fusion, especially the music of Michael Brecker and the Brecker Brothers who were a huge inspiration for me. In addition, I delved deeply into the foundations of jazz music, listening to many of the pioneers who shaped future generations of musicians.

Though born at the end of the 70s I listened to a lot of incredible music from this decade, a period of time that I still feel produced the most pure music, born organically from the souls of musical masters. I regularly return to this music for a shot of genuine groove.

My life’s playlist also includes brazilian jazz, Soul, Funk, Arabic music, jazz fusion, heavy metal and pop (only the good stuff).

Birth of an Album

I first met my co-producer, Ian Freitor, in his studio where I was doing some session work for another musician; this is where we met Executive Producer Avi Newmark who first conceived of the collaboration that would lead to this album: a collection of covers of Jewish music: modern interpretations of traditional songs.

We’ve managed to create a fresh and exciting sound, fusing many styles of music, from Blues to Drum and Bass to R&B, all mashed up with touches of middle eastern, pop and jazz nuances. Also unique to our sound is the integration of live and electronic music, which you can hear throughout the entire album.

In the Studio

Ian and I started working together in the studio and we went immediately from brainstorming to laying out the structure of the first song. From that first song we found our voice and our unique style of collaboration. We felt a great connection and flow–personally and musically–and got very attached emotionally to the project. This connection and commitment kept growing over time as we continued working together.

The two of us found a lot of inspiration from the musicians we worked with who come from all over the world. They were specifically selected for their unique sound and style, and their contribution far exceeded our expectations.

We are very excited with the final result of this focused enthusiasm and hard work. We can’t wait to share it with the world!

Listen to selected tracks from the album Breather:

Here and Now

It took us four years to get to where we are today with a finished product. As a single dad and a full-time musician free time was at a premium and my income went to making a living and supporting my son. Working on this project within these limitations was a challenge but my passion for what we were creating carried me through.

Collaborating with so many musicians was a logistical challenge, and our high expectations for the project lengthened the time spent on the production process for this album. At this stage, with the songs completely mixed and mastered, we are glad that we took the time to get it all just the way we wanted, without compromising quality.

What can you do?

So, two ultra-perfectionists + top quality musicians from around the world + hours and hours of studio time = 1 album ready to release. We’re here now, to ask for your support in releasing this album to the world. Like any album, it needs to be distributed as far and wide as possible and it needs marketing to further spread the word of our project and our vision. In addition, we will make a music video of one of the songs to take the music to a whole new level.

Give us a Kickstart!

In this world of rapacious recording companies producing and distributing only the songs that meet the least common denominator of our society’s tastes, we want to circumvent the stranglehold that these companies have on the music industry by making our own album and sharing it with the world. Be an important part of our indie music revolution by joining our Kickstarter campaign.
Risks and challenges Learn about accountability on Kickstarter

Since the entire album has been mastered and is ready to go there are very few risks in this project. The biggest would be not getting funding for this campaign. Since Kickstarter campaigns are all-or-nothing the risk to you, my faithful supporter, is nothing.

My co-producer, Ian Freitor, and I are very motivated to see our album reach a wider audience and we are brimming with ideas for the music video. Because of our high incentive to make this album a success we feel that there is very low risk that we won’t complete this project, barring an act of some supreme being. We will rely on the company that presses our CDs to deliver the product in a timely manner but apart from that the project is in our capable and highly motivated hands.

Check out Shlomi’s Kickstarter page today for more and a video