Biography

Far from the predictable center of the radio dial lies 79.5, a station that may or may not be entirely real. The soundtrack shifts smoothly, from ’70s underground disco to addictive adult contemporary to sugary sweet girl pop. At the controls is Kate Mattison, a singer-songwriter whose talents reach far beyond the typical picture generated by that generic job description. Skillfully using sophisticated jazz harmony to support addictive R&B hooks, Mattison’s songs are anything but generic, drawing comparisons to maestros like Patrice Rushen and the Mizell brothers but ultimately resisting easy categorization. Breaking onto the scene in 2012, a self-released 12-inch single named “Boogie/OOO” showed their hearts lay firmly in the dancefloor tradition, while live shows demonstrated they went a lot deeper than simple grooves. Not that they didn’t have groove in spades, with The New Yorker comparing them to such icons as ESG, the Jones Girls, and Donna Summer. Their long-awaited followup in 2016, "Terrorize My Heart" 45 became a staple in DJ sets, including Gilles Peterson, Q-Tip, and Questlove, who added the track to his 100 Essential Songs You Should Know playlist. Early 2019 saw the addition of singer and rapper Lola Adanna (Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens) to the lineup, and became a bright new chapter for founding member Mattison and longtime 79.5 saxophonist and flautist, Izaak Mills. The lineup also includes Andrew Raposo on Bass and Caito Sanchez on drums.