Istolethesoul

Koray Özel (f/k/a Istolethesoul) really digs Jazz but, he's also into Underground Hip-Hop, Soul, Funk, Rare Groove, Soulful House, Electronic and Broken Beat. He's influenced by Gilles Peterson, Questlove, Kyoto Jazz Massive, Peanut Butter Wolf, Keb Darge, the guys at Beyondjazz, and Jason Palma.

Koray hosts two monthly events at Unit Café & Bar, 1198 Queen Street West, Toronto, called "A Child Runs Free" (playing the best in all of the above) and "Death by Jazz!" alongside compadre, Oliver Davis, and the occasional special guest.

Special guests include: Corey Dawkins, Inverse, Sean Brocklehurst, Alain Parizeau, Jason Ulrich, Jason Palma, Uncle Mattie, Christopher "Cliché" Sealy, Alister Johnson and Pooyan Saeidi.

Visit the A Child Runs Free/Death by Jazz! website to view event details and flyers designed by Koray, himself.

Click here to join the A Child Runs Free Facebook group.
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Friday, February 5 – A Child Runs Free Unit Bar (1198 Queen Street West, Toronto) 10pm—2am No dress code. No cover. Next Friday, Oliver and I are going to pay tribute to the late J Dilla with a whole night dedicated to his legacy called, “Keep Crushin’”. If it’s not already apparent, I’m a huge fan of Dilla. Of course, I didn’t know this until Slum Village dropped Fantastic Vol. 2 in 2000 and I revisited A Tribe Called Quest The Love Movement from a few years prior. These two albums are among my all-time favourites and I consider them classics. Over the past ten years, I’ve accumulated a vast majority of his work and I’ve slowly begun searching for the tracks that Dilla sampled throughout his career. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to this one! http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=272234152766 Photo of 45 adapter courtesy of jmobley via Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/joshmobley/

Friday, February 5 – A Child Runs Free

Unit Bar (1198 Queen Street West, Toronto)
10pm—2am
No dress code. No cover.

Next Friday, Oliver and I are going to pay tribute to the late J Dilla with a whole night dedicated to his legacy called, “Keep Crushin’”. If it’s not already apparent, I’m a huge fan of Dilla. Of course, I didn’t know this until Slum Village dropped Fantastic Vol. 2 in 2000 and I revisited A Tribe Called Quest The Love Movement from a few years prior. These two albums are among my all-time favourites and I consider them classics. Over the past ten years, I’ve accumulated a vast majority of his work and I’ve slowly begun searching for the tracks that Dilla sampled throughout his career.

Needless to say, I’m looking forward to this one!

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=272234152766

Photo of 45 adapter courtesy of jmobley via Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joshmobley/

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Download 87 Plays

Broken Soul Album Art

Broken Soul

01  Mike Slott – 40 Winks
02  Bei Bei & Shawn Lee – Make Me Stronger (Floating Points Remix)
03  Flying Lotus – Auntie’s Lock (feat. The Life Force Trio)
04  Muhsinah – That Day
05  The Clonious – One At A Time (Funked Up) (feat. Muhsinah)
06  Dâm-Funk – Hood Pass Intact
07  James Pants – Thin Moon
08  Samiyam – Track 17
09  Gonjasufi – Ancestors
10  Oh No – Adventure
11  Tweet – Call Me (Tokimonsta Remix)
12  Soul Litchfield – Throw Ups
13  The Clonious – Lovelights (feat. G & D)
14  Hudson Mohawke – Still On It
15  Britanny Bosco – Glitch
16  Muhsinah – Lose My Fuse

[53:09]

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My Favourite Tracks in 2009 (50)



This year was rich with new discoveries. I heard a lot of amazing old records but, I also came across a lot of exciting new tracks. For this list, I revisited all of the “current” records, CDs, and MP3s that I bought in 2009. You won’t find any vintage Jazz or reissued classics on this list, however, there is at least one remake of an old standard (Emanative’s “Naima”) and a slew of other tracks that will make you wonder which decade we’re really heading towards.



Here’s a partial playlist for your amusement (30/50):




Crème de la Crème

Carlos Niño & Miguel Atwood-Ferguson “Fall in Love” [Mochilla]
SA-RA Creative Partners “Cosmic Ball” [Ubiquity]
Matthew Halsall “Colour Yes” [Gondwana]
Alister Johnson “Invitation” [Wah Wah 45s]
Moodymann “Freeki Mutha Fucka” [Mahogani Music]

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My Favourite Albums in 2009 (15)



Build an Ark Love Part I

The Best! Build an Ark Love Part I (Kindred Spirits)

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Thursday, December 17 – DEATH BY JAZZ! No. 9 Unit Bar (1198 Queen Street West, Toronto) 10pm—2am No dress code. No cover.“Life is a lot like jazz… it’s best when you improvise…” (c) George Gershwin On December 17th, my good friend, Oliver, and I will be playing Jazz for anybody willing to listen. This will be the ninth consecutive month that we’ve hosted our Jazz night at Unit and we couldn’t be happier with the turnout time after time. Every month we see some new faces and some very familiar ones. It’s nice to know that there are other enthusiasts out there searching for new sounds. I hope to see you soon! http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=220107656340

Thursday, December 17 – DEATH BY JAZZ! No. 9

Unit Bar (1198 Queen Street West, Toronto)
10pm—2am
No dress code. No cover.

“Life is a lot like jazz… it’s best when you improvise…” (c) George Gershwin

On December 17th, my good friend, Oliver, and I will be playing Jazz for anybody willing to listen. This will be the ninth consecutive month that we’ve hosted our Jazz night at Unit and we couldn’t be happier with the turnout time after time. Every month we see some new faces and some very familiar ones. It’s nice to know that there are other enthusiasts out there searching for new sounds.

I hope to see you soon!

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=220107656340

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Download 140 Plays

Head/Space Album Artwork

Head/Space

01  Donald Byrd - Estavanico
02  Natural Yogurt Band - Chit Chat
03  Carlos Niño & Lil Sci - The Dream
04  Leon Thomas - The Creator Has A Master Plan (Peace)
05  Dwight Trible - Little Sunflower
06  The Clonious - Dataflow (feat. Dorian Concept)
07  Emanative - Flip-Flop
08  Mr. Chops - The World Is Yours
09  Shape Of Broad Minds - Changes
10  Part-Time Heroes - Shadowlands (feat. Liane Caroll)
11  Bizarra & Boomnote - Breathe
12  Herbie Hancock - Micho Mocho
13  Jeremy Steig - Howlin’ For Judy
14  Nostalgia 77 w/ Keith & Julie Tippett - New Inner City Blues
15  Kafka - The Kafka Anthem

[1:04:06]

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Download 185 Plays

Accidental Relaxation Album Art

Accidental Relaxation


01  Floating Points – Shangrila
02  Dimlite – Back To The Universe Pt. 1 (The Slapped Eyeballers Remix)
03  Electric Conversation – Vibe Change
04  Isoul8 – Free (The Just One Remix)
05  Moodymann – Shades Of Jae
06  AC Lewis – Tickles (Domu Dub)
07  Takuya – Summerjam
08  Yellowtail – Everything Is Alright (Kay Suzuki Bipolar Remix)
09  Guynamite – Set Free
10  Deborah Jordan – Let Go
11  Dâm-Funk – Killdatmuthafu*ka
12  SA-RA Creative Partners – Cosmic Ball

[1:04:13]

“ Music is my religion. Music is the only thing that has never failed me. People let you down, music won’t. ”

Gary Bartz

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Download 91 Plays

And Now I'm Giving It Back Artwork

(And) Now I’m Giving It Back To The People, Pt. 2

01  J Dilla – So Far To Go
02  Amp Fiddler – Empower
03  Exile – Summertime In L.A.
04  Steve Spacek – I Wanna Know Ur Luv
05  Dwele – Dime Piece
06  Omar – Lay It Down
07  Vikter Duplaix – Way That I Feel
08  DJ Hi-Tek – Music Is For Life

[37:28]

* Note to self: I shouldn’t fuss… I done deleted this post by accident.

“ Thank you for listening… It means a lot :) ”
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