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EASY STAR CATALOG ON SALE AT ITUNES
"For a limited time, iTunes is running a spotlight sale on the Easy Star catalog on their reggae page. Almost every Easy Star title is on sale at $7.99 or less. Now is the time to download, stock up and/or explore the outer reaches of the Easy Star catalog. Go to iTunes to check it out and buy some great music. " More info »

TWO NEW IPHONE APPS FOR EASY STAR ALL-STARS
"Easy Star rings in 2010 with two brand new apps for iPhones.

The Easy Star All-Stars’ App from MobBase features music, bio, photos, links and more from the ESA. The App will be updated with tour dates, breaking news, and more, on a regular basis. You can download the App here.

ZOOZbeat is an App that lets users create remixes of songs on their iPhone. Easy Star All-Stars are one of the bands you can remix, with three beats available (Bed Of Rose, Thai Stick and Cool Down). Users can upload their remixes to the ZOOZbeat site. Check out a youtube demonstration on how to use ZOOZbeat here. ZOOZbeat is available in Apple’s iTunes App Store. Or you can check out the ZOOZbeat home page for more info. " More info »

EASY STAR RECORDS 2009 IN REVIEW
"2009 was a great year for Easy Star Records. Here's a quick recap of some highlights.

We released four new albums, Easy Star All-Stars' Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band, John Brown's Body's Re-Amplify EP, and two albums from two new artists on our label, The Black Seeds' Solid Ground, and Tommy T's The Prester John Sessions.

Lonely Hearts hit number one on the Billboard Reggae Chart and reached the top 200 twice. It was the 8th best selling reggae release of the year in the US, followed at #23 by Dub Side of the Moon and #49 by Radiodread. John Brown's Body's Amplify also was a top 100 seller for the year.

The Easy Star All-Stars continued to bring their great music all over the globe, with the Lonely Hearts World Tour playing 125 shows in 25 countries on 6 different continents (the band still seems unable to find a place to play in Antartica!). Highlights included three shows on three different stages over three days at Glastonbury in June, which resulted in the band's first ever UK Festival Award nomination; an appearance on Italian national television during the San Remo Festival in February; plus first ever appearances in Japan, Australia, Russia, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, United Arab Emirates and more.

John Brown's Body was as active on the road; they played their first international shows in October and November, when they joined Easy Star All-Stars for a great 2 week tour of the UK and then teamed up with The Black Seeds in New Zealand for a few more weeks. The Black Seeds made their North American debut in September, opening for John Brown's Body on a US tour. Tommy T spent most of the year touring with his main job, as bassist of Gogol Bordello, and is looking forward to putting his band on the road to support his incredible release.

Michael G was also active, doing remixes for Rebelution, Umphrey's McGee and Tommy T.

We also launched two new apps for the Easy Star All-Stars with Mobbase and Zoozbeat in December (look out for official news on those in early January).

Thanks to all of Easy Star's great fans for making 2009 such a successful year for the label and its bands. We couldn't have done it without you and we can’t wait to get back to it in 2010. " More info »

VIDEO: TOMMY T DISCUSSES PRESTER JOHN
"Sound Roots, a great blog covering world music, has posted an exclusive first video of Tommy T discussing his Prester John Sessions album. It's a great way to get inside Tommy's head and hear about the album. See it here. " More info »

TOMMY T PRESS QUOTES
"Very positive reviews of Tommy T's The Prester John Sessions have been rolling in. We wanted to share some highlights with you:

“…his album grooves without compromise and glides by with beautiful melodies and glorious improvised jams…Prester John is an effusive statement of Ethiopian diversity to a previously ignorant world and a welcome addition to any music lover’s collection.”
The Aquarian Weekly

“The Prester John Sessions fizzes with energy and is a serious contender for African album of the year.”
World Music Central

“The Prester John Sessions is an intoxicating blend of Ethiopian folk styles, heavy dub reggae rhythms, gut-punching funk grooves, and horn-heavy Afrobeat. The Abyssinia Roots Collective…sews everything into a seamless flow…Tommy T takes this opportunity to balance between playing musical ambassador and musical adventurer, freely mixing the sounds he's been carrying inside him all his life with those he's absorbed along his journey.”
All Music Guide

“You can delve as deeply into the messages and the history of the music on The Prester John Sessions as you’d like, but you can also simply enjoy the album for what it is: a great mix of instrumentation, rhythms, and musical culture with its own voice – one that sounds ancient and fresh at the same time. If the goal was a “universal vibe,” then Tommy T and The Abyssinia Roots Collective have done what they set out to do.”
Jambands.com

“Bassist Tommy T. Gobena pulls together the funky rhythms and riffs of contemporary Ethiopian music, creating an enormously exciting, electrifying result.”
JazzWax.com

“The Prester John Sessions is an instrumental affair whose insinuating reggae grooves, tasty jazz licks, and churning slices of steamy Ethiopian funk combine for an international experience a lot more resonant and personal than anything you’ll find on some Putumayo mix CD.”
LimeWire Music Blog

“Engaging and interesting.”
ChartAttack

“A record full of [the] finest Ethiopian music.”
Examiner.com " More info »

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