Kenny Process Team

For several years this instrumental combo was active out of its London base. The intricate guitar-centered themes were largely composed by Kev Plummer, who would then teach the pieces phrase by phrase to bassist Matt Armstrong. The trio was completed by a drummer who figured out a way to play with sticks that had been shaved in half lengthwise, the result of attempts to play more quietly when the group's rehearsals aroused frequent complaints from the neighbors. After much rehearsing the group recorded a full album of material, 17 pieces total, for the Hemiola label. After the breakup of the band, this material was re-packaged along with a complete live set for release on the Bingo label. The group's touring efforts were largely confined to the United Kingdom, although it did make a few appearances on the European continent. For several years a second guitarist was added to the combo, and the physical appearance of Simon Deewogab was certainly a contrast. While Plummer and Armstrong always played sitting down, and were every bit the picture of refined, polite English gentleman, Deewogab was an enormous black man with dreadlocks all the way down his back who always played standing up, towering over the others in a kind of rock star mode. Prior to a large U.K. tour in 1997, Deewogab had an unfortunate accident in Amsterdam: he fell into a canal, and had his leg impaled on a rusty 17th century mooring. Deewogab eventually left the band completely. The remaining trio had plans to become a house group for a London club the London Musicians' Collective was planning to open, but the venue never became a reality and this plan was abandoned, as were several proposed tours of the United States. The music of Plummer and cohorts remains of interest to fans of forward-looking...