Colossus

Fronted by 6-foot 8 inch English funk bassist Charlie Tate (who has played with Roy Ayers, James Brow, and Gil Scott Heron), Colossus blurs the line between hip-hop and groovy jazz. Merging live instrumentation and traditional sampling alike, he creates a smoky, mellow vibe that derives much from both early 1970s soul-funk and early 1990s jazz-rap. Colossus released the album West Oakland on OM Records in the fall of 2005, joining forces with several emcees (including Roots Manuva and Azeem) but also serving up straight rhyme-less jams as well. Quality tunes for intellectual rap heads and old school beat fiends to relax to.