MP3 Leak of the Week: The Expanders

June 7, 2015

On June 16th, The Expanders will release their new album Hustling Culture. This marks the 3rd studio album by the group and their first under Easy Star Records. Grab their new song “The Horse” for FREE one our homepage this week only. Read more about the group and album…

You can download The Expanders NEW single “The Horse” for FREE on our home page under the MP3 Leak of the Week on the right hand column! This Download will only be available until Saturday June 13th, 2015.

The Expanders – “The Horse” – Download HERE

“The Horse” Background:
Set to release their 3rd studio album Hustling Culture, the first with Easy Star Records, The Expanders have established a sound that pays homage to the roots rocksteady reggae of the 60’s and 70’s. The album includes 12 total tracks with only one guest appearance.

The band worked with several members of the funk group Orgone in the process of making the album. Both based out of the greater Los Angeles area, the two groups played clubs and bars together in Los Angeles and San Fernando Valley. When The Expanders started working on their self-titled debut album in 2006, they went to the recording studio of Orgone guitarist Sergio Rios and haven’t stopped going since.

“It’s all analog equipment. We record on analog tapes and there is a really good mix of vintage high quality equipment. (Sergio) understands the old school sound we are going for” explains singer/guitarist Devin Morrison.

Roger Rivas of The Aggrolites played organ throughout much of the album and Orgone keyboardist Dan Hastie plays clavinet on the track titled “Reggae Pops,” an ode to LA reggae/dance club legend Nemencio Andujar. Limiting the features for this record was a conscious decision for the band, preferring instead to make a record that is all them.

“We don’t want to use big names in the scene as a crutch to sell records. We would rather have people enjoy it, or not enjoy it, on the merits of what we do. Whether or not that was smart I guess we will see. We just wanted to create a record for The Expanders” Morrison stated.

Of the 12 songs on the new album, “The Horse” comes in at track 9. Here’s what Devin Morrison had to say about song:
“There was a style of reggae happening in the late ’60s and early ’70s produced by Coxsone Dodd at the legendary Studio One that we like to refer to as ‘Studio One Chuggers.’ Not quite the ‘skinhead’ feel, but not really roots or rockers either. Tunes like ‘Rathid’ by Sound Dimension are examples of what we mean. With ‘The Horse’ we were going for that chugger vibe. We might have shot a little wide of the mark in the end, but in any case we were all pretty stoked on the result!”

As for the new album, Hustling Culture, Devin concludes that: “We feel this record captures how the band has grown together musically in the time since we made the first album. I just think the grooves are a little tighter, the songwriting is a bit more focused, and everyone has really learned to trust each other musically.”

You can purchase The Expanders new album Hustling Culture on iTunes by clicking HERE!

The Expanders Backgroud:
The Expanders are 4 piece group out of Los Angeles, CA consisting of Devin Morrison (Guitar, Vocals), John Asher (Drums, Vocals), John Butcher (Guitar, Vocals), and Chiquis Lozoya (Bass, Vocals). These 4 come together to create a sound akin to the Jamaican roots-reggae of the 60s and 70s. Since 2006, The Expanders have been a popular backing band for some of Jamaica’s biggest artists when coming to California, including: Alton Ellis, The Maytones, The Ethiopians, and The Wailing Souls, among others.

Vocalist & Guitarist Devin Morrison best summed up their style of Reggae to The Pier by explaining: “In a rhythmic sense, we identify much more with mid-70s roots and ‘rockers’, a term coined by legendary Jamaican producer, Augustus Pablo, in the mid-to-late 70s that was widely used to describe what reggae was sounding like at the time. We also play a lot of the early 80s sound that was mastered by The Roots Radics and producer Linval Thompson; ‘Something Wrong,’ ‘Race Is Run’ and ‘Snow Beast’ from our first album are examples of that early 80s style, while ‘Evilous Number,’ ‘Gone Away’ and ‘Careful’ have a more roots ‘rockers’ feel.”

You can download “Snowbeast” for FREE inside our MP3 Massive section by clicking HERE.

the expanders Tour Dates

Huge thanks again to The Expanders for allowing us to share their song “The Horse” to post up for FREE download. Free music is a privilege that we’re grateful for and we appreciate the work these artists do! Please feel free to download this song for FREE and spread the awareness to your friends!
Enjoy the FREE track on the homepage!

Article By: Mike Patti and Keenan Donath
Photo By: David Norris