Shakedown Gospel

Somewhere in the uncharted backstreets east of East London exists an orphaned dirt road. Here a forgotten community of hookers, drug dealers and scrapped-motor hobos, exist side by side with chariot healers, bewildered residents and local sky-pilots; the leaders of divergent faiths attending the local Mosque, Synagogue or Shrine. In that road stands a building without a doorbell or a sign. This is producer Alex McGowan’s Space Eko East Recording Studio. Some say it’s really just another church: The Church of Rock’n’Roll.

Frequented by a loyal congregation from the radically non-violent religion of Music, this recording studio has hosted productions for Jah Wobble, Son Of Dave, The Urban Voodoo Machine, Jim Jones, Sister Cookie, Big Joe Louis, Tricky, Martina Topley Bird, Stewart Copeland and Josh Homme among many others.

It will therefore come as no surprise that Alex’s previous tracks from these collaborations and The Future Shape of Sound have featured in soundtracks including Six Feet Under, CSI Miami, The OC, Hollywood feature films ‘Bad Company’ (starring Anthony Hopkins, Chris Rock) and ‘Obsessed’ (starring Beyonce).

The Future Shape Of Sound draw their influences from artists such as Sister Rosetta Sharpe, Clara Ward Singers, Slim Harpo and Hasil Adkins. They are spearheaded by producer, and highly skilled hat-wearer Alex McGowan (AKA Captain Future) and Stuart “Lodekka” Dace. Stuarts gloriously chequered career having seen him play sax on the classic Primal Scream album “Screamadelica”, join Mo’ Wax band Deep Joy and work as Head of Design at Chrysalis Records.

Having trod the stages of many a night spot and major outdoor congregation (Bestival, Secret Garden Party, Larmer Tree, Grillstock) with varying live incarnations, the duo decided that now is a fine time to put in some graveyard shifts to re-align their rootsy mix of Crime Gospel and Primitive Blues.