KD: I change as much as I can. I think that's probably one of my fortes, in terms of why a lot of people dig what I do, is that I really try to think as a composer when I play.
DC: Right.
KD: So if I'm playing with Gov' Mule, I wanna try to be more of a rock guy, but depending on what they're doing. Or sometimes Warren's going completely for a jazz thing, so I'll go there with him. Or if I'm sitting in with some, you know, more electronic band, I'll try to play a little more sparse and, you know, flavorful. So yeah, I'm always trying to change what I do, depending on the setting.
DC: I gotcha. Well, one of the things that must be really exciting for you, with this Trio project right now, is that it's the first release on your own label. How did that come about? Because you've recorded for Blue Note in the past, and it's always interesting for me to hear how musicians decide to conduct their business. So if you wouldn't mind telling me how your Bobby Ace Records came about, it would be great to hear.
KD: Well, you know, my new manager (Jody White) and I have been talking about this for a while and about the fact that when we hooked up I kind of had a tentative deal with SCI Fidelity, and he wasn't really excited about the deal or the enthusiasm, as far as advertising. And so he immediately was like, soon as this is done, we're gonna do our own thing. And so the deal kind of fell through with SCI Fidelity and they kind of got real sketchy about the thing, and so we were like, fine, we'll do it ourselves! And so it's kind of really the template, I think, for the new musician. You really don't need record companies, and they're kind of a hindrance to a large extent. It's kind of what you can make back from a record.
DC: Absolutely. Well, that's in line with what I've heard other musicians say, both in terms of the financial aspect of it and also in how they're own independent label came about. It was a seeming coincidence, where they found the opportunity right in front of them and decided now's the time to try this, so that's fascinating.
KD: Yeah.
DC: Let me go back and talk for just a minute more about the Lunar Orbit CD. I notice it was recorded in just a few days. Now, did you have it planned that way, in limiting your time, or did it just go so smoothly that you were done before you knew it?
KD: Actually, interestingly enough, we recorded a record for SCI Fidelity and in the process of this experimentation it was not really… it was a little limp. And when they kind of started balking at it, I told my manager, I said, "You know what? I can go in the studio in three days and knock this thing out."
DC: (laughs)
KD: Because I knew the problems I'd run into, you know?
DC: Yup.
KD: And so that's what we did! I called in some heavy hitters, and I called in this guy Aaron Redfield to play drums on a few of the tracks, where he's more of a drummer and a programmer, which I knew I needed. And then I called in Kenneth Crouch, who's Andrae Crouch, the gospel singer's nephew. And he was the first keyboard player with Lenny Kravitz, so I met him with Lenny Kravitz. And he's been working with like Eric Clapton to Luis Miguel and all these pop acts, and he's a great jazz player. So I called him in. I said, "Man, I need some sounds. I need some sonic things." And I found my dream team! So it was really an easy thing to do in those few days.
DC: You're on the road right now with the Trio. Are you gonna focus on the Trio for a while? What other activities have you got planned over the course of the upcoming weeks and months, and to what extent?
KD: The next year will be all about the Trio, and we're doing a few shows with the Greyboy Allstars. We'll do a new record at the beginning of the year sometime, and I'll do a Tiny Universe record, beginning of the year, and release that in June.
DC: Nice. Are the Tiny Universe CDs gonna be on your own label?
KD: Definitely.
DC: How about the Greyboy Allstars? That gonna be on yours? Or is that gonna go elsewhere?
KD: That'll be somewhere else. They have different management.