The Duval Project

A wake up call to British Jazz and Neo-soul, we've caught the moment, it's 2018! Passion is not a word you hear that often nowadays in music but The Duval Project have it in bucket loads. They're not making music to be famous or because its a good career, they are making music because they need to, because it is etched somewhere deep in their souls. Why the Duval Project? "because it's the only thing i ever wanted to do," says leader and trumpet player Gary Alesbrook. "This project is the culmination of 20 years of hard work..."

The Duval Project was born in Bristol, a city famous for fusion of musical styles. It's a city bred on jazz, soul, funk, hip-hop, drum and bass and all these styles have shaped the band into what it is today. A music that fuses jazz with neo-soul, a music that has a heart beat and a passion.

"When i was younger, Bristol was the place to be, it was all going on, it was interesting. A massive influence on me. Early soul and jazz music has a heart to it, a groove. This is what Duval is all about."

The Duval Project is an honest, unpretentious band that grew out of the Bristol music scene. At first instrumental, featuring the ridiculously talented and in demand rhythm section of Richie Blake (bass), Miguel Andrews (drums) and Andy Nowak (keys). They had known each other for years and 'lock in' like no other UK section. "There is no better rhythm section and it wasn't long before they were being nabbed by the likes of Roni Size and Kelis..."

The final part of their story came when Gary met Marie Lister. "I had been looking for a singer that would not only compliment the band but also bring something new to the table. "Marie's influences are unbelievable! Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa, Ella Fitzgerald...she laps it all up and inspires us all to play at our best..."

When it comes to inspiration, this band eat it up and spit it out as something fresh and new. "It could be the smallest thing from any track, a sound, a groove, a chord..." Gary's love of jazz and soul ,having played with Raphael Saadiq and Lynden David Hall. danny's passion for drum and bass, richie's love of funk. Andy's side-line folk projects. Marie's many other projects including afro-beat and dance music. Their love of soundtracks. Jill Scott, D'angelo, Jose James....anything and everything. Music from now, music from then.

What really marks the Duval Project out is their attitude. "Alot of improvised music can be all about technique nowadays," says Gary. "It's boring, there's no soul, no groove, no pocket...nobody's having fun with it anymore. We take our music seriously, obviously, but we want to have fun with it too otherwise what's the point."

Their current E.P was mixed by Grammy Award winning New York sound engineer Russell Elevado and mastered in LA by Dave Collins. They are already supporting the likes of Roy Ayers and have recently played The Jazz Cafe and Pizza Express.