Since I was (relatively) late coming to the whole electronica scene, I thought it best to select a name that indicated that. Hence "Grandpa Mojo". And no, I'm not really a grandpa... yet... (fingers crossed)

So, what's the story?
I was born in the 60's on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming. Coming from that environment, it's hard to imagine that I would eventually find my way to trip hop, downtempo, and acid jazz. But that's exactly what I did.

Throughout my life, musical influences have come from varied and obscure sources. As a baby, it was listening to my mother's recordings of swing bands and operatic tenor Mario Lanza. As a child, it was listening to old, old country: Minnie Pearl, Grandpa Jones, Hank Williams, and others, on very scratched 45's in the basement with my brother. Throughout grade school, I would hear traditional Shoshone and Arapahoe music when I attended pow-wows with my Native American schoolmates. In junior high, it was The Jackson Five, Stevie Wonder and Earth, Wind, and Fire. In high school, it was jazz: Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis, Woody Shaw, Dexter Gordon, and Chick Corea. In college at North Texas State, it would continue to be jazz, but with the addition of funk, punk and world music. After college, I would play with all types of groups, from classical orchestras to indie bands.

In 1999, after numerous stints with various recording and touring groups, I turned my attention to trip hop and downtempo. I felt kind of stupid, to be honest. This stuff had been around for years, and I had only recently become aware of it. But I didn't waste any time. I couldn't wait to be a part of it, so I began creating ideas for tunes and then hooked up with my long-time friend Kip to flesh them out.

One thing that is different about Grandpa Mojo's music, is that rather than sampling other artists' grooves and beats, I tend to play my own grooves and then use that as my source material.

So, you do this full-time?
Hell NO! (Wish I could, though, and am doing everything I can to make it come in to fruition!)

I used to work for Cakewalk in Boston, MA. as the "Project5 Evangelist". I worked out of my home creating songs, sounds, patterns, tips and tricks, tutorials, etc. for the Project5 software. I also created the Project5 website (www.project5.com) as a resource for Project5 users. - But that job is now over (*sob*)... It was a temporary contract (5 - 6 months) and I had a BLAST while doing it. I still keep in touch with Jesse Jost, Product Manager for Project5 by sending him strange, cryptic, slightly suggestive emails now and then. :-)

Currently I'm working as a contractor for Sun Microsystems and am fervently working on creating my own line of DVD-ROM tutorials. My first product, "How to Mix Folk Rock Music", was JUST completed December of 2005 for Thomson publishing and I am looking forward to doing more titles soon! You will be able to find them at your local music stores and online pretty much everywhere.

Are you signed to a label?
Kind of. I'm affiliated with MileHighHouse Productions out of Denver, CO. It's a collection of DJs and Producers in the Denver, Colorado metro area. You can check me out under "Producer Talent". I also sell my tracks on Beatport (that info is below) and on iTunes. - I used to be all cranked up to be on a label but have not been so keen lately considering the success I've achieved on my own.

Can I buy your tracks?
Yes. My individual tracks are available from www.beatport.com. Use the search to look for "Grandpa Mojo" or browse for me under "Trip Hop" and "Acid Jazz". You can also find my album and individual tracks on www.iTunes.com. Also, my CD is available from CDBaby. Go to www.cdbaby.com/cd/grandpamojo

Can you just GIVE me your tracks?
Sure. I'm easy... I've got a hidden URL with 4 tunes as MP3s (128 Kbps). Just email me a request, butter me up a little, and I'll point you right to them.

The header to this section says there is GM, the producer, GM the musician, and GM the band. What's the difference?
Grandpa Mojo, the musician, is Chris Hansen. He plays upright acoustic bass, rhodes piano, trumpet, guitar, turntablism, and sings.

Grandpa Mojo, the producer, is the same guy (ha!) but trades the musician's chair for the producer and engineer's chair. I have produced and engineered everything from heavy metal to rap to alt. folk to big band jazz albums to television commercials and filmscores. Interested in having me produce you? Contact me.

Grandpa Mojo, the band, is a constantly revolving bunch of musicians who play the Grandpa Mojo tunes live - along with a bunch of really cool downtempo / trip hop classics we've transcribed (Beastie Boys, David Holmes, Up Bustle and Out, DJ Logic, Toledo, Shadow Records, Miles Davis, etc.). Want to know where we're playing next? Check out the calendar.

Hey, I just checked out your music and really like it. Who else does music like this?
Okay, here's the easy part. These are all the guys I look up to - who I take my inspiration from. Check my links section for some of their websites. Otherwise just do a google search for more information on these bands and producers (listed in the order I spy them in my CD rack):

• David Holmes
• Madlib
• Fingathing
• Skalpel
• Up, Bustle and Out
• DJ Logic
• Dan the Automator - producer for Gorillaz, Handsome Boy Modeling School, etc.
• Ubiquity Records
• Shadow Records
• Nils Petter Molvaer
• Beastie Boys
• Tom Waits
• Amon Tobin / Cujo
• Meat Beat Manifesto
• Mouse on Mars
• Kid Koala
• Tchad Blake (producer)
• Mitchell Froom (producer) - check out his "Dopamine" album - awesome!
• Gomez
• Gorillaz
• Cibo Matto
• Supreme Beings of Leisure (my good friend, Ramin)
• Static Revenger (my good friend, Dennis White)
• Weapon of Choice
• Medeski, Martin, and Wood
• DJ Krush
• Tin Hat Trio
• Ursula 1000
• Soul Coughing
• Modereko (my good friend, Tim Kobza)
• MC 900 Foot Jesus
• Tosca
• Greyboy
• Talk Talk / O Rang
• DJ Cam
• Peace Orchestra
• Critters Buggin
• Brian Eno
• David Baerwald
• Daniel Lanois (For the Love of Wynona - awesome album) - great producer
• Miles Davis
• Jon Scofield
• Plaid
• Tricky (Maxinquaye - wow!)
• Bjork
• Portishead
• Woody Shaw
• Andrew Hill
• Don Cherry and Ornette Coleman
• Larry Young
• Tortoise
• Gavin Bryars (bow down... "Jesus Blood" - absolutely awesome CD)
• Steve Reich's "Different Trains" - awesome! a must have!