“…embark on a futile bout of lexical tail-chasing as you endeavour to find adequate adjectives with which to catalogue his stunning, burnt sugar vocals.”
- Stylus Magazine
Damon Aaron
DAMON AARON
"Don't Want to Know"
Having spent the last several years touring and releasing instrumental music under the name Contact Field Orchestra, Damon Aaron picks up where he left off with a soulful version of John Martyn’s “Don’t Want to Know”.
“Don’t Want to Know” was a one-off he casually recorded at home and sent to friends during the pandemic. John Martyn’s repeated mantra “I don’t want to know about evil” seemed like the only song to sing at the time. It still does. Now it’s being released as the first single from a new vocal album forthcoming this year.
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BIO
Most well known for a brand of soul/folk songwriting that is liberal with it's cross-pollination of American and African roots music, Damon Aaron has also been at the intersection of the LA jazz and beat scene for many years.
As a guitarist, he's been featured with seminal hip-hop MC Divine Styler, Ghanain Reggae singer Rocky Dawuni, and LA Ethio-Jazz favorite Ethio-Cali amongst others. His work with Carlos Niño and jazz orchestra Build An Ark allowed him the opportunity to play with luminaries like Nate Morgan, Michael White, Derf Reklaw, Big Black, and Phil Ranelin amongst others. His vocal collaborations have included Telefon Tel Aviv, Anthony Valadez(KCRW), and Barbara Morgenstern. His production work has found him making beats and composing music with Mike Simpson(Beastie Boys,Beck).
For the last several years, he's been performing a dubbed-out live show at festivals throughout Europe(Fusion,Garbicz, Lethargy) and releasing music as Contact Field Orchestra. CFO is a multi-media project that combines found sounds, hand-built percussion, hacked toys, and tall tails. The debut lp, “Contact Field Orchestra Vol. 1”, was released in late 2013 in partnership with acclaimed art collective HIT+RUN. Recorded almost entirely with contact microphones, this project allowed him to explore different textures and rhythms as instrumental compositions favoring mbira, melodica, and banjos.
Currently, he's writing and recording new vocal music and doing session work in Los Angeles. He contributed to DJ Nobody's latest Ubiquity release, as well as The Gaslamp Killer's "Heartmath".
SELECT DISCOGRAPHY
Don't Want to Know (Single)
2022 Deodar Records
FRIENDS
2022 Deodar Records
Ethers
2017 Deodar Records
Autumn
2014 Deodar Records
Highlands
2009 Ubiquity
Ballast
2021 Deodar Records
(Originally released 2005 Plug Research)
COMPILATIONS
2008 Karen P Presents: Broadcasting (Sonar Kollectiv)
2001 Dublab Presents: Freeways (Emperor Norton/Dublab)
2006 Impeach The Precedent (Kick Snare Hat)
2004 Rewind! Vol. 3 (Ubiquity)
1999 The Funky Precedent Vol. 1 (Loose Groove)
COLLABORATIONS
2019 The Gaslamp Killer, Heartmath
2019 Dj Nobody, All Too Familiar, (Ubiquity)
2012 The Space Between, Joey Newman + Damon Aaron
2012 Anthony Valadez “Walking Away”, Just Visiting (Plug Research)
2005 Barbara Morgenstern/Robert Lippock, Tesri (Monika)
2004 Telefon Tel Aviv, Map Of What Is Effortless (Hefty)
2003 I-Wolf Presents: Soul Strata (Klein)
1999-2009 Build An Ark, Various
FILM/TV
2020 Son of the South, Directed by Barry Alexander, "Roughshod"
2016 Ray Donovan, "Pick And Axe"
2014 Composer, In Between Songs, Directed by Joshua Bell
2013 Assistant Composer/Guitars, The Power Of Few, Directed by Leon Marucci, Music by Mike Simpson
2012 Original Music, Dancing Still, Written by Ingrid Rogers, Directed by Robert Munic
2011 Original music, The Space Between, Directed by Travis Fine
PRODUCER
2007 Megan Jacobs, Prosperity
