Who: My Full-Length Album for "Shades of Grey". A duo band project with Laura Cavaliere.

When: Released June 2009. Pressed on double picture disc vinyl. Artwork by M. Scott Whitson & Don Vincent Ortega

What: From the hills of Tennessee to the bright heart-shaped mosaic glares of Philly, SHADES OF GREY packs the one-two punch of a Marciano and Pacquio. The superhero slickness of a Raven Darkholme and Weng Weng. And the anomalous sound of an offspring that Deborah Harry and Roger Troutman together never conceived. This audio/visual brainchild between two longtime mofos in crime, LAURA CAVALIERE and RAYMO VENTURA, began over some stoop jivin', evolved into some freestyle textin', and resulted in producinʼ a homemade meal created for themselves and y'all to consume. Releasing on their own label imprint Fo Sho & Tell, their debut full-length album "All They Do Is Dis" sautes a skillet of juke jams that may not necessarily follow an existing recipe, but simmers automatically true to their make. Teen flames, 20 something podbloggeristas, 30 something ex-raver “design creatives”, and 40 something not so new-wavers can all now finally gather and join the same dance circle...And in the middle of that dance circle, are two narrating chefs with a sizzlinʼ grill full of parables spread across a buffet line of beats: SHADES OF GREY. Musically, Shades of Grey lies somewhere on top and beneath the gradient blanket of song-craft. Acoustic drifts vs. Synthetic riffs. Analog drum vs. Digital drum. Instrumental kirigami vs. Lyrical oralgami. Choose your own adventure! From dance floor disco-coasters “Movinʼ Up The Line” & “Shot OʼClock”, to the autobiographical time travellinʼ tale “Short Story”, to the grandiose Zeldarian opus finale “Definition Ammunition”, “All They Do Is Dis” will make ya hands clap as well as love tap the person right behind ya. When it comes to putting on a live show, Shades of Grey is much more than just your average “two turntables and microphone” standardized tap. Itʼs Lauraʼs mic-clutched gangsta struts and gypsy splits. Itʼs Raymoʼs sarcasmic talkbox and his mixed-media scratch montages, which incorporate a synced visual finesse similar to a drive-in b-movie or a power-point presentation on ecstasy. Itʻs an intimate relationship where party peoples can instantly recognize game as they kick game. So there you have it folks: the eye candy, the ear candy, the stagger and the swagger. Shades of Grey translates the vague to the vogue and the witty to the gritty, with a bona fide chemistry resembling that of a Kid Koala Nufonia graphic novel. A “duet themselves” approach to pastichinʼ past, present and future influences. All rolled and cut up for ya like a sushi lunchbox special.. served raw, fresh, and savory!