Turn your head or ears in almost any direction in Calgary and you’ll notice a poster or show featuring Jory Kinjo or Aaron Young holding down and enhancing the front or back of the band. It wouldn’t be hyperbolic to call either one of them the glue or the Swiss Army Knife of the Calgary scene. Bass player Kinjo brings a unique history to his soul, ska, reggae and rhythm & blues as a band leader and session player who’s played around the world. You likely discovered him first playing old-school soul music with the long-standing Mocking Shadows, then followed him in Montreal’s third-wave ska kings, the Planet Smashers, which ignited a love for ska and reggae and inspired a new direction in his music, leading him to form JK & the Relays. Flash forward a few years to a side project with his three brothers, aptly called The Kinjo Bros.

At 23 years old, guitarist Aaron Young had already produced, arranged and performed on over 15 albums. Over three decades, Young has produced and/or played on over 180 jazz and roots albums, including with Sillan & Young, The Polyjesters, Susan Aglukark and Kellylee Evans plus toured the globe in the modern worldbeat, choreographed stage show Barrage for five years.

The duo’s new project, showcased in two 2023 releases, melds all their experiences and sonic explorations into tight acoustic roots and blues originals.

— Kerry Clarke