Dan Kusz

Danny Kusz – named “one of the hippest jazz cats in Minneapolis” by Minneapolis/St. Paul Magazine while in his early 20s, had the good fortune of recording his debut EP Lost In The Groove with renowned Twin Cities keyboardist Ricky Peterson, best known as David Sanborn’s musical director for 30 years. The project scored some local airplay and earned the multi-talented horn player numerous accolades, including two L.A. Music Award wins for “Best Jazz Single” and “Best Nu-Jazz Artist”, and several Minnesota Music Awards nominations including “Best Horn Player”, “Jazz Recording of the Year” and “Jazz Group/Artist of the Year”.

Despite his initial success, and a slate of headlining gigs and festival performances to support it, Kusz ultimately stepped aside for a few years. While working steadily as a sideman with some of the top musicians in the region, he began developing a fresh sound that stood apart not only from the vibe of his first album, but other indie urban jazz up and comers as well. Creating an explosive hybrid of his major alto influence, David Sanborn and his favorite funk-rocker, Minneapolis’ own legendary Prince, Kusz worked with an outside producer (Aaron Cosgrove, frontman for the longtime pop/R&B/rock band The New Congress) for the first time to create a dynamic new vibe captured by the 13-track album’s provocative title SEXY.FUNK::VELVET.JAZZ. Kusz had performed live over the years with The New Congress many times, and felt that Cosgrove and the group’s keyboardist Russ King were the perfect sonic architects to help bring his vision of a fresh, youthful approach to urban jazz/funk to life.

Kusz, whose versatility has led him to perform with everyone from Eric Leeds and Joey DeFrancesco to Root City, and Marcus Miller’s saxman Alex Han, felt that Cosgrove “has always been a musical genius when it came to writing and production and I wanted to collaborate with him to create a different sound that would stand out”. The saxophonist, whose powerful alto is the emotional centerpiece of each song, enjoyed the process of writing the melodies to the groove tracks and synth parts that Cosgrove sent him. “He took me out of my comfort zone and helped me open my mind to work with unique sounds that inspired me to dig deeper as a player and composer,” he says. “I love the way it came out, and the title really captures all the elements that make it so much fun to work on and now listen to. I’m looking forward to getting out there and playing gigs under my own name again. Nothing tops being onstage performing for people who have come to hear your music live.”

ON STAGE Growing up in the Twin Cities area where he was able to watch some of the top performers in jazz and funk, Kusz realized early what it takes to put on a great live show that can move crowds to become a part of the experience. Kusz’s energetic stage presence and interaction with his close nit band shows how fun and funky it can get when there’s a collective passion to entertain. Full of positive energy and a great sense of style, Kusz and his band love to connect with fans and often times you’ll find him out in the crowd or maybe even on top of a table all the while looking sharp in a three piece suit!

DAN'S SOUND Kusz swings into a funky groove and soars on his alto, surrounded by jangling guitar and powerful synth energy on the opening track “Sexy Sax MF”. He eases into a playful discofied thump groove on the cool yet spirited “Velvet Love Girl”, and then invites us inside of his romantic ballad style on the whimsical and soulful “When We First Met.” A symphonic intro draws Kusz into the mid-tempo emotional funk ballad “Nice & Slow”, and he achieves a “Perfect Score” with a moody slow jam where the deep alto melody is complemented by trippy echoing synth sounds. Kusz’s balladry and artful use of horn texturing reaches a high emotional point on the gently percussive “Life” (which starts with crackles and pops, like an old LP) before the infectious, Daft Punkish “Beatnik Boogie” dances and jangles with exotic joy and old school funk grooves. The saxophonist then trips into the 80s for a happy synth driven “Sax Voyage 2”, featuring a hypnotic keyboard harmony under Kusz’s mid tempo sax melody.

True to its title, “Incredible” sets the moody with a low toned mid tempo ballad that eases over a gentle synthesizer hypnosis and cool thumping beat. Starting with David Filey’s elegant acoustic guitar intro, “Makin’ You Hot” (produced by Victor Reynolds) is a pure old school liquid soul caress around a punchy lead sax melody. After bouncing his jamming “Sexy.Funk 2” off a fiery electric guitar and thick bass pocket, Kusz pays homage to his first album with the title of “Still Lost In The Groove”, which offers a swirl of liquid funk energy, old school trippy atmospheres and a buoyant textured lead sax line. The set wraps with a first class funk jam, texturing a dreamy, swirling synth wash, thick bass and Kusz’s whimsical sax before exploding into a danceable funk rocker that includes a wild jazzy keyboard solo. Of all others, this is where the Sanborn and Prince influences merge together in wild ecstasy. Kusz’s other current musical projects include recordings with Solomon Witherspoon & 1017, Dan Ristrom & The Big Throwdown and Alex Rossi.

FROM THE BEGINNING A native of North St. Paul, Kusz began his musical life playing violin in fourth grade but switched to saxophone a year later because this school had a regular concert band and no orchestra. He chose alto because everyone else wanted to play tenor; though he has played all three, the new project features exclusively alto. Hearing the Best of David Sanborn and the Sanborn/Bob James album Double Vision around sixth grade was life changing, and he found himself gravitating towards blues and R&B (like Sanborn) long before he learned about and became proficient in jazz.

While taking private lessons, he continued playing in school bands throughout junior high and high school, in addition to a group he formed with his friends on the side. In his senior year, Kusz was awarded The Louis Armstrong Award. Kusz’s high school band director submitted for him to receive this award for his performance in Jazz Band. This award is the top senior jazz award, a highly prestigious award to a musician. It is given out by high schools nationwide to recognize "outstanding musical achievement and an incredible dedication to the program". Typically there is only one recipient per school district.

Two indelible memories include opening his window and playing along to “Chicago Song” so his neighbors could hear it, and playing in blues jams around town at 18 or 19. Other influences on Kusz’s developing style include blues great Stevie Ray Vaughan, urban jazz saxophonist Everette Harp and legendary James Brown and Parliament saxman Maceo Parker.

Awards

Best Jazz Song 2006 - L.A. Music Awards Nu-Jazz Artist Of The Year 2006 - L.A. Awards Louie Armstrong Jazz Award (2001) Nominated for Best Sax Player 2007 - MN Music Awards