Hearth Music is incredibly proud that the ground-breaking collaboration we helped put together, Mr. Lif & Brass Menazeri, for the 2010 Seattle Folk Festival has inspired these artists to work together long-term. We'd asked Mr. Lif to join us for the Festival, knowing that his particular blend of socially-conscious, hard-hitting lyrics would fit perfectly with any fan of political folk music, especially in the midst of a raging depression and unchecked corporate growth. But we needed a band to put with him... Knowing how amazing brass bands sound with hip-hop beats, we asked if he'd be down to perform with a Balkan brass band, and to our surprise, he was totally enthusiastic about the idea! When we asked around for the best Balkan brass band in the US, all our contacts kept saying: Brass Menazeri. So on a whim, we invited them up and offered the idea to them. Peter Jaques, head of Brass Menazeri, is an old-school hip-hop head, and was thrilled at the chance to work with Lif.

So everyone flew out to Seattle and just a few days before the festival, gathered in an abandoned coffin factory (seriously) for their one rehearsal before the gig. It was a magical moment all around, and after a blow-out show at the Seattle Folk Festival, they headed over to KEXP for a special in studio.

UPDATE: MR. LIF & BRASS MENAZERI MADE THEIR GOAL! CONGRATS!!

Read more about this collaboration

Now they need your help. They're raising money for their first album and started a Kickstarter so fans could help them out. They've got a few days left and they're almost there, so dig deep and support this ground-breaking collaboration.

MR. LIF & BRASS MENAZERI KICKSTARTER PAGE

Have a listen:

Mr. Lif & Brass Menazeri Bandcamp Page

 Also, check out the national press they've been getting for the project:

Interview with Kickstarter Headquarters

San Francisco Weekly Article