A Double Bill: The Steve McQueens x WONK (JP)

Two bands at the forefront of modern soul and jazz in one heady, seductive evening at the Esplanade Annexe Studio.

The Steve McQueens (Mosaic Associate Artist)
With music swerving between cool seduction and gripping magnetism, The Steve McQueens deny transient and pedestrian inclinations to produce a wild tumble of electric jazz and soul for the willing listener. Formed in 2013 in Singapore, the band is Ginny Bloop (vocals), Joshua Wan (piano), Jase (bass) and Aaron James Lee (drums). In 2015, they released Seamonster, produced and recorded by Incognito leader and founder Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick in his personal studio in London; a collaboration that led the band to perform in the awe-inspiring O2 Arena in 2016. The growing reception of their work has brought the group to major stages in Asia such as Summer Sonic (Japan), Java Jazz Festival (Indonesia), Jarasum Jazz Festival (Korea), and the Melbourne International Jazz Festival. Following the release of their sophomore album TERRARIUM and the support of math-pop act ZA FEE DO and Romantic Records, they have recently completed a multi-city Japan tour, with Peter Barakan’s Live Magic! Festival being one of the highlights.

WONK
An experimental soul band from Tokyo, Japan, WONK’s Sep 2016 album Sphere received the Best Jazz Album award at the CD Shop Awards, based on votes by CD retailer employees. Their fusion of jazz, soul, hip hop, and other musical influences has attracted attention from various audiences, and has secured the young band performances this summer at festivals including the 16th Tokyo Jazz Festival, Blue Note Jazz Festival 2017 and Summer Sonic 2017. The band also produced the official remix for Blue Note Records star José James’ Love in a Time of Madness in his album Live Your Fantasy, in addition to conducting successful performances in Berlin and Paris in Feb 2017, reaching eager audiences in Japan and abroad. Their second and third album Castor and Pollux were released in Sep 2017.