Fonville x Fribush is the brand new musical collaboration from acclaimed drummer Corey Fonville (Butcher Brown) and organ player Sam Fribush. Charlie Hunter introduced the two young producers, allowing their collective ear, musical talents and friendship to bring out the best in one another. Together with undiscovered guitarist Alan Parker, the debut album is a tasty mixture that just may reignite a newfound appreciation for the organ trio sound. Meant to inspire a generation that’s ready for something more than reimagined blues, funk and boogaloo, this record pushes the limits of organ trio music into something more youthful and fresh.

A product of its environment, tracks are rooted in the down-home soundscapes of North Carolina and Virginia – Blue Ridge mountains, day-trips to Atlantic beaches, backyard bbq’s, moonshine, weed and block parties. The album taps into an unexplored range that honors the nostalgia of traditional organ trios like Jimmy McGriff, with the harmonic elements of Ronnie Foster and the rhythmic perspective of The Alchemist or Madlib. Simultaneously throwing back and looking forward, with nothing sacrificed in the process.

Wasting no time, the trio cut 30 tracks in just two days, recorded live in the same room at Minimum Wage Studios in Richmond, VA. They had to remove the door of the studio to bring in Fribush’s 1962 Hammond B3 organ, undeniably the standout voice on the record, which ran through live analog delay pedals. On several tracks, Parker overlays lap steel melodies in a unique pairing not often heard with the organ. And Fonville’s crispy beats and insanely creative hand-percussion textures throughout the album are a DJ’s new favorite sample. None of the songs were recorded more than once. It was all done live with no splicing, as organic as it gets. The final result is clean and not overworked – just three talented cats and a great engineer (Lance Koehler). 

At the end of the day, they’ve created music for the people – blue collar jazz – which comes together in a fly and extremely palatable way.