Quadron - Quadron & Avalanche (2009/2013)

Quadron is a Los Angeles-based Danish duo consisting of singer Coco O. and musician/producer Robin Hannibal. The group considers their genre "electronic soul music".

The self-titled debut album Quadron was released in late July 2009. Paste Magazine named Quadron "Best of What's Next" in August 2010, and New York Magazine named Quadron's self-titled album number 7 in their top 10 best albums of the year. The duo released their second studio album Avalanche in 2013.

Quadron (Copenhagen,Denmark) was born when Robin encountered Coco at the suggestion of a friend. Already a name within Owusu & Hannibal and Boom Clap Bachelors, Robin was ready to continue his collaborations with some new adventures. In the ingénue of Coco he saw a female muse, influenced by Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill, and the group was born.

Robin creates melodies with lush orchestration and deep beats, intellectual and crisp. Coco layers these with her voluptuous timbre, together completing the sound of Quadron. Five years have passed and Coco s sweet soulful voice now perfectly accents Robin s instrumental skylines. They are lush, lyrical and sophisticated.
Quadron reminds us of the future, creating classics we ve never heard before but remember like our hearts knew them yesterday.

After the duo, who are also members of the soul collective Boom Clap Bachelors,
enjoyed the accolades of the collective s debut Kort Før Dine Læber (2008); Robin and Coco began work on their own debut recording for Quadron. This lead to the release of their debut, Quadron in Denmark (August 2009). The record found it s way into the hands of Anthony Valdez, a DJ at the influential radio station KCRW. He immediately began playing the record and the rest of the DJ s followed. Since the end of 2009, Quadron has been a constant fixture in KCRW s Top 10 and this led to the duo signing to the Los Angeles label, Plug Research, whose roster includes Bilal, Dntel, Flying Lotus, Daedelus and more.

Robin has already enjoyed a long list of collaborations with the likes of Aloe Blacc, Om mas Keith, Buraka Som Sistema, Wally Badarou (Talking Heads, Level 42), Erick Sermon and others as well as being able to site such notable fans as Pharrell Williams (N.E.R.D.) and James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem). Now, along with Coco, Quadron becomes his next spectacular story!
Review

It's rare to come across a full-length release that is stellar from beginning to end.The lush beats from Robin Hannibal and Coco s beautiful vocals make Quadron a winner.With songs that are so full of emotion and life, this one is an instant classic in my book. --Raul Campos (KCRW)

Robin Hannibal and Coco O.'s first Quadron album generated a ripple effect that brought about numerous appearances and collaborations carried out separately and together. Tricky Stewart sought the Denmark duo to provide a caressing version of Thriller deep jam "Baby Be Mine" for the Think Like a Man soundtrack. They recorded a lush single with soul giant Leon Ware. Kendrick Lamar's "Bitch, Don't Kill My Vibe" sampled "Tiden Flyver" by the Boom Clap Bachelors. Coco appeared on albums by the Internet and Tyler, The Creator, as well as the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby. As one-half of Rhye, Hannibal -- who also produced the gorgeous "Lead the Way" for Szjerdene -- made Woman, which debuted well within the top half of the Billboard 200. Now signed to Sylvia Rhone's Epic-associated Vested in Culture label, Quadron fill out and commercialize their sound a little, but neither clutter nor compromise it, on Avalanche. The most striking turn is "Hey Love," a rollicking number co-produced by Fraser T. Smith (Leona Lewis, Taio Cruz, Florence + the Machine). It's an obvious bid for a pop hit. Coco's voice once seemed built for wispy, dazed material like "Slippin'," yet it turns out that she's just as fit for a grand, thumping backdrop. The pool of resources is much deeper; some of the songs were recorded in seven different studios with a longer list of session musicians, and there's vocal production from the A-list Kuk Harrell and a guest appearance from Lamar. Despite that, the album has all of the charm, nuance, and lingering effect of the debut. Lush, cushiony grooves are supplied on "LFT," "Favorite Star," and "Neverland," the last of which conveys the isolation and hopelessness felt by a Michael Jackson impersonator. That song just happens to be followed by the sparkling "It's Gonna Get You," which makes like the resuscitation of an MJ and Stevie Wonder cut intended for release between Thriller and In Square Circle. Those who were attracted to the first album's quiet, lithe moments get some of the same through "Befriend," "Sea Salt," and "Avalanche" -- airy romantic ballads with perfectly slight touches of woodwinds, strings, and even pedal steel guitar. While Coco and Hannibal are doing it a little less softly now, they're still killing 'em.