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Paul Bender Hiatus Kaiyote Square
Paul Bender Hiatus Kaiyote Square

Hiatus Kaiyote Bassist Paul Bender Shares His Appreciation For Classic Recording Styles

Lenny Kravitz, Grace Jones, Lauryn Hill, Lion Babe, Thundercat, SZA & More Rock The Afropunk Festival 2015 in Brooklyn, NY.

If you love Hiatus Kaiyote, you have bassist Paul Bender to thank. The man responsible for the band's low end seems to have a preternatural knack for knowing just when to hang back, play out and lock airtight into the groove, making it possible for his bandmates to explore increasingly awesome sonic planes; it's Bender's foundation that lets Hiatus Kaiyote take flight.

Whether he's roving through the mist on "The World It Softly Lulls" darting quickly on "By Fire" or shredding venues in half on the band's new, yet-to-be-released "Cinnamon Temple," Bender's playing always carries a clear sense of purpose and often its his basslines that keep the band's songs stuck in one's head for days. Now, in a brand new video interview, Paul Bender reveals some of the road he's traveled along the way. "It was only really when I started playing bass," he said, "That I really became aware of how awesome music was." The new video, entitled "Influences & Inspirations" and produced by Darius Devas's Being Here company, is a micro-documentary look into what keeps the Melbourne man passionate about his craft. We learn that it was his brother's band--a group in need of a bass man--that got him started on the instrument and are treated to glimpses of Bender the producer as he strives to bring The Beach Boys' classic LP Pet Sounds to life and find that "perfect take." Watch the video below--it's an inspiring look inside the mind of a consummate musician.