Event
FREE MORAL AGENTS w/ Zechs Marquise, The Penfield Mood Organ
Free Moral Agents is the brainchild of Isaiah Ikey Owens, Grammy Award-winning keyboardist for The Mars Volta & De Facto.
The Long Beach, CA-based Owens initially started Free Moral Agents as a solo project. It has since expanded into a group effort, a result of Isaiah's decade-long career of collaborations with artists as diverse as El-P, Mastodon, Sublime, Saul Williams, and Z-Trip.
Free Moral Agents released their debut Everybody's Favorite Weapon on GSL Records in late 2004. With freestyle moments layered over vibrant melodies, heavy beats, and jazzy interludes, Everybody's Favorite Weapon was just the beginning of something that was no longer considered just a side-project.
While out on the road with the Mars Volta, Isaiah kept thinking of ways to expand Free Moral Agents. In 2006, FMA went from a solo effort to full six-member group and started improvising new material. With the lineup of Mendee Ichikawa (vocals), Reid Kinnet (Rhodes), Jesse Carzello (guitar), Dennis Owens (bass), Ryan Reiff (drums) and Isaiah jumping from keyboard to keyboard, FMA quickly came up with much new music and was in and out of the studio several times in 2007 and 2008.
Free Moral Agents is now gearing up to release their new album Honey In The Carcass Of The Lion, an EP titled Control This and a 10" vinyl collaboration with legendary Fela Kuti's drummer and Afro Beat co-founder Tony Allen titled North Is Red.
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Zechs Marquise formed in El Paso, Texas during the spring of 2003 when brothers Marfred and Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez came together with childhood friends Matthew Wilkson and Marcos Smith. The group soon named itself after a popular Japanese anime character and hit the studio to record its first album during the late summer months of 2004. That studio effort was later scrapped and in June 2006 the band instead released 34:26, a live improved set that showed its great range of talents and influences. By fall of 2006, Zechs was touring the west coast consistently, sharing the stage with such eclectic acts as Daedelus, Busdriver, The Album Leaf, (DJ) Nobody, Daddy Kev, The Gaslamp Killer, and Totimoshi.
July 2007 saw the band return to the recording studio. Having learned from the difficulties of their first attempt, the quintet decided to keep all of the recording in house, purchasing a mixing board, microphones, and Pro Tools in order to track all of the recordings themselves. After a few days in their studios, dubbed Castle Greyskull and El Morro, the members realized they had enough material for a full length album. The record, Our Delicate Stranded Nightmare, was completed in February 2008.
Zechs Marquise then spent time on the road, auspiciously touring with Free Moral Agents & Blank Blue. In March 2009, the band made its first adventure overseas to Europe, opening for the Omar Rodriguez-Lopez Group, in which Marcel - then performing double duty - is also a player. During the overseas tour, Our Delicate Stranded Nightmare was released in Europe by RLP/Willie Anderson Recordings on CD as well as the first pressing of the album on vinyl.
In May 2009, Zechs Marquise signed on to the prestigious management roster at Sargent House and will release Our Delicate Stranded Nightmare in the U.S. on vinyl and CD on August 25th through Rodriguez Lopez Productions.
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LocationThe Frequency
121 W. Main
Madison, WI 53703
United States
Categories
| Minimum Age: 21 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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