“Eclectic sounds flourish in Chicago’s genre-busting music scenes. Just look at Cordoba. This jazz-fusion, r&b influenced sextet is as a progressive socially as it is musically... Songs about disinvestment, police violence and gentrification may not seem like a natural fit for summer music fans, but the group’s strong ability for combining the political with the musical are sure to win over even casual listeners.”
“Jazz is the perfect vehicle to convey revolutionary sentiments and ideas for protest. Cordoba takes that ideal and releases Break the Locks Off Everything New, a jazz fusion calling for major societal changes.”
Short Bio
Cordoba is a jazz fusion sextet from Chicago. We are interested in combining jazz improvisation with the contemporary sounds of hip-hop, soul, and rock. Syncopations, harmonic tension, soaring melodies, and liberated extemporizations are reflections on our relationship with Chicago. How can such a wealthy city fail to provide for so many of its residents? How can a place that produces such amazing art and culture be plagued with such violence? Must a city with such diversity also suffer from so much inequality? How can the wonderful communities in Chicago stave off the isolation so many feel in the modern world? We fight for justice in our daily lives - half of the members of the band are community organizers. As artists, we are deeply invested in creating art that represents and amplifies voices that are so often left unheard.
Performances
Empty Bottle (Chicago)
Hungry Brain (Chicago)
Schuba's (Chicago)
The Whistler (Chicago)
Subterranean (Chicago)
Beat Kitchen (Chicago)
Do Division Fest (Chicago)
Pilsen Fest (Chicago)
Cole's (Chicago)
Reggie's (Chicago)
DZ Fest (Hickory Hills, IL)
Urban Artifact (Cincinnati)
EL Lenador (St. louis)
Nightshop (Bloomington, IL)
Phat Bites (Nashville)
Bremen Cafe (Milwaukee)
Pimento Jamaican Kitchen (Minneapolis, Minnesota
P.A.R.C. (Michigan City, Ind)
Taste of Michigan City (Michigan City, Ind)
Shut It Down Video
“Their jazz and R&B inflected music, particularly on their latest EP, Break the Locks Off Everything, has the horns of a more traditional group but also the shifting melodies of something more modern and the clever vocals of Brianna Tong that give this group a different air. Upon first impression, one could describe them as a slightly more formal Hiatus Kaiyote, and who couldn’t use something like that. To get an idea of what we’re talking about, the group just released a video for the closing track off their EP, “Shut It Down”, which would definitely give you an idea of the artistry abound on the Chicago streets.”
“We first discovered this amazing Chicago Jazz-Fusion sextet thanks to their performance at last years DZ Fest in Hickory Hills. Cordoba‘s live act had us hooked from the start. Their latest music video for the song “Shut It Down” is a beautiful ode to Chicago’s cultural and physical landscape featuring dancers, performance art, and some truly gorgeous footage of the city itself. ”
Press Photos
Photo by Khori Wilson