Mass Hysteria by Taxi Vision
Taxi vision is a Queens-based music project with branches extending to Quito, São Paulo, and Umbria, purveying reckless arrangements of highlife guitars, doo wop harmonies, chopped up samples, samba and psychedelia.
The band was formed in 2017 by NYC high school friends Matteo Battistini and Luca Senise, when the duo occupied the storage room of a Greenpoint woodshop to explore their joint obsession with polyrhythm and songform. They began cutting their teeth playing with a collective of drummers who congregated weekly at Issyra Gallery in Hoboken, New Jersey.
Battistini moved his lodgings and studio to a shipping container located in the yard of an underground artist warehouse, then to a neighboring shed, before settling in his home borough of Queens. After a debilitating, near-fatal illness left him temporarily unable to play his instruments, he started to incorporate electronic elements and samples into the band’s recordings. This period of medical marijuana-fueled experimentation came to define Taxi Vision’s hybrid sound.
After a slew of singles, Taxi Vision released their debut EP, Channel One, in March 2022. Recorded in various improvised settings with drummer Matteo Ciambella, multi-instrumentalist Ernesto Papaleo, and vocalist Victoria Ruiz, this arresting debut served as a sonic manifesto for the genre-defying band.
To fulfill this new and ambitious sound, Taxi Vision expanded to six members, taking their lush arrangements to ballrooms and basements throughout the New York area and across the east coast, playing with such like-minded acts as Meridian Brothers and Delicate Steve. The band developed a cult following, known for their bombastic, multilingual live show that features mighty dance grooves, polyrhythmic guitar freakouts, subatomic bass, and the subtle magic of vocalist Laura Pereira (known for her work with Juan Wauters and Sessa). Taxi Vision performances regularly resolve into all-night dance parties presided by bassist and resident DJ Ernesto el Defensor.
Taxi Vision is Ricardo Lerman, Jay Pluck, Ernesto Papaleo, Laura Pereira, Camilo Perez, and Matteos Battistini and Ciambella. Their debut full-length album Dollar General will be released late summer 2023.
Tracklist
| 1. | Dollar General | 4:52 |
| 2. | Out Of Time | 3:52 |
| 3. | Room With A View | 3:38 |
| 4. | Zero Sum Game | 4:06 |
| 5. | Stop (Playing Games With My Heart) | 3:43 |
| 6. | Don't Fall Asleep In The Sun | 3:03 |
| 7. | Mass Hysteria | 4:40 |
| 8. | Linden St | 2:37 |
| 9. | Summer In The City | 5:53 |
| 10. | A1A | 4:48 |
Credits
Originally released October 30, 2023
Matteo Battistini - vocals, guitar, bass, percussion, keys, sampling, and production on all tracks
Matteo Ciambella - drums on tracks 1, 2, 5, 9. 10
Ernesto Papaleo - bass, synth, M1 piano and arrangement on track 9
Laura Pereira - vocals on tracks 4, 5, 9, 10
Camilo Perez - guitar, bass, and conga on track 2
Miryam Prodanovich - accordion on track 5
James Kogan - recording engineer track 9
All songs by Matteo Battistini, except track 5, co-written with Chester Dubov, and track 6, with lyrics by Noah Tavlin.
Mix and additional production by Carlos Hernandez.
Mastered by Amar Lal.
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