MOSAIC FOUNDATION RETURNS TO BING FOR SPECIAL CYBER SHOW

When one arrives at a performance by Mosaic Foundation, as I did about a year ago, one could be forgiven for thinking that they’ve stepped through a time warp into the mid-1970s. This reggae band’s sound is quite unlike the current electronics-heavy, dancehall-influenced reggae of today. This band wouldn’t have been at all out of place playing alongside the likes of Bob Marley or Toots and the Maytals. In other words, it’s much, much closer to roots. While their sound says “Jamaica,” the members of the band hail from Rochester and Ithaca, New York. And as if to stamp the roots label on even more firmly, the dreadlocked lead singer of the band is originally from Ghana.

I recently spoke (via e-mail) with the band’s guitarist and founding member, Mike Corey:

TCC: How did Mosaic Foundation form? MC: Mosaic Foundation originally came together about 7 years ago. Our drummer, J.P. Nawn, answered [my] ad in Craigslist. The rest of the band came together in similar fashion. We added our singer, Cha Cha (Foli Yao Augustine), a few years later and have not looked back. To start, it was all about playing music to feel good, with good people, and has grown into something much more communal.

TCC: How did Mosaic Foundation get its name? MC: The name comes from the idea that the band has always had members from diverse backgrounds and ethnicities coming together to make the music. We try our best to teach about all types of people getting along and working towards common goals. So the band is a small microcosm of that.

TCC: I understand that your lead vocalist and percussionist, Foli Yao Augustine, is from Africa. How did he arrive in New York State? MC: This is true, he is originally from Ghana. He first came to the states to attend Cazenovia College, and we are happy that he has stuck around! Yao currently lives in Ithaca, where a few of our members reside.

TCC: What and who do you consider to be your primary musical influences? MC: Naturally, we are all big roots reggae fans, and we each have our favorites: Culture, The Mighty Diamonds, The Gladiators, The Wailers, Dennis Brown, Burning Spear, the list could go on. All the classic singers and groups certainly play a big role in our approach to songwriting, but there is also influence from the different styles we love outside of reggae. Just as reggae first started as a confluence of many types of music, we like to pick little things from other genres from time to time and adapt them to our songs.

TCC: You recorded one of your CDs at [regional Afrobeat band] Big Mean Sound Machine’s Studios in Ithaca. What is your affiliation with Big Mean Sound Machine? MC: We have been friends with the Big Mean crew for many years. That traces back to playing many shows together, and both being part of the larger Ithaca music scene. We have recorded our first few albums with Angelo, of Big Mean Sound Machine, and there is an additional project, “Cha Cha and the Ndor Band,” that features many of Big Mean Sound Machine’s players. They are all superb musicians and great people. We love to work with them when we can.

TCC: Where can people find your music? MC: Our CD’s can be found online at Bandcamp.com (mosaicfoundationmusic.bandcamp.com) in hard copy and digital form. If people would like to get the live experience from home, there is also plenty of recorded material available on our YouTube channel.

Mosaic Foundation is playing at Cyber Cafe West, 176 Main Street in Binghamton, on Saturday, March 5th at 8:30pm.