Rock, Reggae and Hip Hop: Each is definable, recognizable and at once familiar to people the world over--but never before have those three forms of musical expression been blended into a sound that is as indefinable as it is recognizable and familiar. Enter the Philadelphia quartet known as The Movement.
Growing up with one another in Columbia, South Carolina, Joshua Swain and Jordan Miller spent time jamming in various high school bands together. Swain, a multi-instrumentalist versed in guitar, bass, and drums, left for Florida’s Full Sail University in 2001, while Miller honed his freestyle rap, guitar, and keyboard skills in Columbia. Upon returning in 2002, Swain reconnected with Miller and the two began writing songs in Swain’s garage using a drum machine and drawing from musical influences that ranged from Sublime to Tupac to Pink Floyd. The Movement was born.
Early incarnations of the band found them as a trio. It was Swain, Miller and DJ Jon Ruff. They developed a loyal following as a trio and went on to release their first full length album, entitled On Your Feet. That album, recorded and mixed in 24 studio hours, was released in March of 2004 and continues to be well received by new fans worldwide.
Fast forward to 2008. The band had built a loyal following while touring the Southeastern circuit nonstop and opening for national acts such as Steel Pulse, Blues Traveler, Slightly Stoopid, The Wailers, Ludacris, G. Love & Special Sauce, Common, Long Beach Shortbus, The Wu Tang Clan, 311, and Rebelution. Things were good but stale; the band wasn’t breaking any new ground and the members began to lose interest. DJ Jon Ruff left the band to pursue a family while Josh and Jordan came to a crossroads. Enter producer Chris DiBeneditto (G. Love & Special Sauce, Slightly Stoopid, The Expendables), who had seen the band several times and was searching for new talent to work with. The Movement quickly teamed up with him at Philadelphonic Studios in Philadelphia to begin work on what would become Set Sail. It was a creative tsunami--Josh and Jordan churned out eighteen songs within a week's time. Revived by the momentum, a commitment was made to relocate to Philadelphia in order to give the project every chance to blossom. The next step was to solidify the band's roster so Chris DiBeneditto contacted local drummer Gary Jackson. After one jam session together, Gary accepted an offer to join the band and promptly suggested bassist Jay “Smiles” Schmidt as the missing element. It clicked right away. The vibe was on. The Movement was reborn!
The prominent new additions to the group proved their worth immediately as the live music took on a potency it had never achieved with a looped beat. The band's dedication to touring virtually nonstop since the release of Set Sail has served to establish their increasing reputation as an unmissable live show. As a further result, Set Sail has thus far attained the number 7 spot on iTunes' Top 100 Reggae Albums, brushing shoulders with the releases of long-established icons of the genre. As the fanbase booms, the crowds reach a fever pitch--but this is only the beginning--The Movement is about to Set Sail!
