Four80East is the brainchild of producers Rob DeBoer and Tony Grace, also known internationally for their indie label/production house, Boomtang. Originally conceived in the studio in 1997 as a side project from the more commercial pop music they had been working on, Four80East was born as a small indie release in England later that year, simply entitled "The Album".  What began as a whim went on to revitalize the Smooth Jazz world the following summer when they broke through in the States with "Eastside", a mid-tempo groover that became the seventh most-played track on Contemporary Jazz radio that year.

In early 2000, their follow-up album "Nocturnal" was released by Higher Octave Music to wide acclaim. This "stylish set of late-night grooves" was listed by JazzTimes magazine as one of the top 50 albums of that year. "Round 3" followed in 2002, and saw the band start to make the transition from studio project to live act.  Four80East made their live debut at the Catalina Island Jazztrax Festival in October of 2003. "En Route" was produced over most of 2005 and 2006, as the boys were juggling a variety of other projects, including raising their families (they have five boys between them).  With a new label - Native Language Music - behind them, Four80East is back in the saddle!

Inspired by the acid jazz/groove movement that was flourishing in the United Kingdom, they launched their Four80East concept in the late ’90s as a cool, creative side project geared towards a loose, improvisational dance vibe. Over the last decade, as chill music established itself as a genre of its own, their jazz-inflected urban trance music, first dubbed trip-jazz, now known as Nu Jazz, became a global phenomenon. With En Route, Grace and DeBoer continue on that path.

En Route opens with a moody ambience and slight blues sway on the soulful electronica of "Five By Five". After the funky dive into "Noodle Soup", Four80East heads into the trippy, film score darkness of "The Drop", which blends avant-garde jazz guitar and trippy sound effects over a sensual groove. "Double Down" takes a plugged in, postmodern view of the traditional jazz quartet, with cool and chaotic high hat and drums mixing with Jon Stewart’s smoky tenor; Stewart also adds a punchy solo to the soul-influenced "Been Too Long". "Closer" serves as a late night seduction song, with sexy wordless vocals drifting over dreamy synth textures.

The groove picks up on the next two tracks: the energetic jazz/pop fusion-flavored title track and the spacey electronica/jazz gem "51 Division", before the chill takes over again on "Don’t Look Back" (with DeBoer’s crisp guitar lines circling Bryden Baird’s silky trumpet tones) and the haunting, shadowy "Easy Come, Easy Go". Grace and DeBoer wrap En Route with the Eastern-flavored, electric guitar-driven number "Waterline".

The first single from En Route is the thumping and hypnotic "Noodle Soup", which is fashioned as a hybrid dance, trip, and jazz track. Four80East’s old school soul and jazz influences are front and center with DeBoer’s remarkable jazzy guitar and piano riffs jangling playfully over Grace’s irrepressible beats. "Noodle Soup" has already earned a nod for Best Original Song at the Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, scheduled for April 2007. Four80East is also nominated in two other categories, Best Group Or Duo and Best Keyboardist.

With the release of En Route, Four80East is also planning an extended live tour for the first time. The longtime studio act has received strong accolades for its handful of live performances over the past few years, at the Catalina Island Jazz Trax Festival, the Uptown Jazz Festival in Toronto, and the Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards, among others. Get to see them if and when they come to the UK!

I have put a couple of vidoes of Four80East's performances here from YouTube, I hope that you enjoy their stuff as much as I do.