Music Release Helps Dementia Patients Find Their Mojo

Band Name: Valley Of Kings
EP Title: Midnight Live

House Of Guilty Pleasures
https://youtu.be/KJmQy-7_vtM
Rock Steady
https://youtu.be/gLhCDST_1PA
Kenetic
https://youtu.be/CsCqfGccCzU

Valley Of Kings are a very soulful Rock band from the heartland of East Sussex, made up of frontman songwriter and producer Dar.Ra, Aiden Purdey and Rory Purdey, and recently witnessed that music still holds the power to reach people beyond words after creating music workshops in a Dementia care home in East Sussex recently. It was surprising to see how the residents responded to hearing music and how it triggered off past memories which brought happiness and laughter to the residents.

Dar.Ra has graced the UK national charts and dance charts with two top 40's and two number one dance records with acts signed to EMI, BMG, Festival Records (Australia) plus remixed legends like Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Tears 4 Fears, Urban Harmonix ft Rachel Brown (Faithless, Groove Armada) and many others along the way. His first solo album Soul Hours released in 2010 made album of the week of Spain's Heart FM as well as receiving support from BBC Radio, playing to over 1 million people on an air live show.

The Purdey brothers add soul to the unit, and they have a huge amount of musical DNA in their blood being related to the late great John Martyn OBE who had a 40 year career, and worked with some of the greats from Eric Clapton to Dave Gilmore.

The boys got the band together after finding out they loved the same records and began playing shows in the South East. They wrote an album in 6 months, booked into Neil Costello's (Paul Macartney/Stevie Wonder) studio and recorded the whole thing in 8 hours. The boys wanted to go back to the way records were made back in the days of the one take and release it mode.

They recorded their debut EP Midnight and found something interesting happened when Dar.Ra was doing his music workshop in a Dementia care home.

Music has a natural power to go beyond words, people with dementia hold key memories which can be triggered by certain songs which can stimulate the mind, releasing endorphins which can lift a persons spirit, when nothing else can.

'While playing certain songs its an amazing thing to see someone go from staring into space to seeing a smile break out on their face, and suddenly they want to move their body and play along to the music, it is like witnessing magic happen'.

After playing a set of tracks one of the staff put on the Midnight Live EP, the response from the residents was to play along to it, while others where tapping their feet, which was the most wonderful experience to see, after all words had failed, but music made the difference.

The music industry has taken some near death blows since the internet and the Pop Idol shows and this has changed the way people respect music and musicians, so to see music being felt by people with no agendas restores any doubt in the power of music. It goes beyond chart success and back to the reason why music is so essential to the human soul.

The Valley of Kings create a hybrid of Rock, Soul, and Reggae, mixed with a high energy that makes the Live show well worth having a look at which you can do by coming down to Printers Playhouse Eastbourne where they will be headlining on the 16th Jan with support from up and coming mod influenced band The Gallery's from Kent who recently supported Secret Affair.

The EP Midnight Live is out in Jan 2016 on Kusha Deep Records

for more info contact
Andy Purdey
kushadeep@yahoo.co.uk
01323 833989

http://www.kushadeep.co.uk

http://www.mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=188708

A Family Valentine With Jon Samson And Lucy Kalantari At ShapeShifter Lab

http://mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=180537

Award winning children’s artist and music therapist, Jon Samson, has teamed up with Lucy Kalantari to deliver a rare and enchanting musical performance for families at ShapeShifter Lab in Brooklyn, NY, February 15th at 11:00 am – Love & Joy: A Family Valentine.

“[Jon Samson] will get little heads bopping without alienating grown-up listeners.”
–Timeout NY Kids

Jon Samson, two-time ISC winner and NAPPA award winning artist, has moved the kindie community with his latest release, A New Kids Album. Featured in Time Magazine's TFK Family Edition, A New Kids Album is a selection of original and familiar stories with an abundantly rich sound and an ingenious delivery that quickly becomes an addictive treat for children and adults alike.

“The best jazz album of the year brings forth the roaring 20′s with no prohibition on juice boxes.” –Jeff Bogle, Cooper & Kid

Lucy Kalantari’s newest release, Pockets Full of Joy has been making some noise. Earning a spot in The Best Kids Music of 2014 by Cooper & Kid, Pockets is a collection of ukulele ditties with a 1920s flair about being a mom, love and babies. Her sound is sophisticated for adults and irresistible to babies. She’ll perform with her full lineup of drums, upright bass and clarinet.

ShapeShifter Lab is a large, open space perfect for listeners of all ages to enjoy the fun sounds of these two dynamic performances while dancing about. Enjoy hot cocoa, valentine’s treats and a chance to win an autographed ukulele!

For tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1128853

Love & Joy: A Family Valentine
Sunday, February 15th
ShapeShifter Lab
18 Whitwell Place, Brooklyn, NY 11215
$10 advanced tickets
$15 at the door
(Free for children under 2)
Doors: 11am
Show Time: 11:30am

Lucy Kalantari - www.LucyKalantari.com
Jon Samson - www.CoCreativeMusic.com

Kerchoonz K-box Selected 'Runner-up' Music Therapy MVP By Therapy Times

The K-box, the first gel audio technology that turns any solid surface into a speaker system introduced by social media platform Kerchoonz.com, was selected as a 'Runner-up' for Music Therapy Most Valuable Product of 2009 in the Therapy Times' 2009 MVP Awards. Therapy Times found that the K-box provided therapists with the ability to create a portable music therapy environment.

"Something new to the field that I think has got a lot of potential to change the way we use music therapy is the K-Box. Using special 'gel audio technology', this handheld speaker can bring people out from the seclusion of their headphones and share what their music with me, just by using any flat surface. We're not shut out anymore, but sharing a musical experience, working primarily on the rhythm and vibrations of the music. Even better, I've found that clients enjoy changing between different flat surfaces I have in my office because it changes the frequencies of the vibrations - wood, metal, or plastic tables can all be very interesting amplifiers." - Ryan Thames, MT-BC http://www.therapytimes.com/content=0302J84C48769286406040441/#Music

By plugging the device into any laptop, portable gaming device, MP3 player, mobile phone, TV or any 3.5 mm audio jack and then placing K-box on a desktop, table top or wall, the product uses the Gel Audio Technology to convert the entire surface underneath it into a giant audio speaker. Unlike most mini-speakers, the K-box does not produce a 'tinny' sound. Instead, the denser the surface, the deeper the bass response. This hybrid speaker has both a standard speaker inside (delivering mid-to-high frequencies) and the Gel Audio Technology (delivering low-end bass frequencies through surfaces).

The size of a mobile phone, the rubber-based device has an average output performance of 95dB at 1m, with the bass performance varying, dependent on differing surface levels with output ranges between 40Hz-20Khz. Recharged through USB connection, the K-box offers up to 20 hours of playtime between charges. K-box is available at www.kerchoonz.com/kbox, selling at £49.99 or $74.50 USD, plus shipping & handling.

About Kerchoonz.com
Kerchoonz, founded by Indiana Gregg and Ian Morrow in 2008, is a forward thinking, multi-media company conceived to help level the playing field for artistic people through the democratising power of the internet and freedom of choice for the artists and the public. Kerchoonz.com is a social networking platform that allows free exchange of music, art, ideas and entertainment. It enables fans to search and discover new music, play games, meet people, watch and upload video, keep up with news, post blog, and a whole lot more. It is an ad-funded model that allows artists and musicians to be paid for their audio and video stream, as well as their free downloads.
http://www.kerchoonz.com