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Premiere: Simpkin Project “Hustling” old-school

Acoustic alt-reggae tune hits the sweet spots

Orange County, CA’’ s six-piece Simpkin Project plays a multi-faceted blend of reggae, blues, rock, and Americana, steeped in soulful harmonies. Phil Simpkin and Shawn Taylor, co-lead vocalists. The band used vintage amplifiers, mics, compressors and equalizers so t hey could achieve the classic sound they were going for on Beam of Light, and wanting each song to feature some unique sound or instrument; old-school Hammond organs, Leslie speakers, pianos and guitar amps, an assortment of timeless microphones, preamplifiers, custom compressors and one-of-a-kind equalizers were mixed using some of the best analog equipment available.

Additionally, the band wanted each song to feature some unique sound or instrument that would distinguish it from all the other songs. We recorded old school Hammond organs and Leslie speakers, pianos and guitar amps, an assortment of timeless microphones, preamplifiers, custom compressors and one of a kind equalizers mixed by using some of the best analog equipment available.

The band had previously released a video of a plugged-in version of “Hustling,” but—happily—decided to revisit an acoustic version of the song. Phil Simpkin told Elmore: “We did it on a whim, trying to utilize Shawn Taylor’s Studio for a quick MoBoogie-like experience. It was the first time we ever played “Hustling” acoustic style. We were pleasantly surprised! Our bass player Nick Zermeño filmed and edited the video. We were just trying to capture that raw acoustic feel on a live recording!”

It works for us.

Can’t get more live than this without being there, but the album, complete with tried-and-true electronics, is real, too.

Learn more about the Simpkin Project HERE

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Find a performance near you HERE

(L-R) Sean Kennedy, Nick Zermino, Phil Simpkin, Jules Luna, Shawn Taylor, Sergio Sandoval

 

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