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Biography
Born in the industrial Detroit, Michigan before moving West at the age of six, Mark Nishita’s earliest musical excursion came collaborating with the Dust Brothers production team. The partnership went on to produce records for and overdub keyboards on a host of artists on the Delicious Vinyl roster, during which time Nishita worked as a part-time handyman. In a moment of serendipity, the musician accepted a job doing work at the Beastie Boys’ home in Silverlake, California and subsequently became a involved in the group’s future output. Nishita made his recording debut on the Beastie Boys’ 1992 album “Check Your Head” and subsequently recorded on 1994’s “Ill Communication”.
1994 also brought Money Mark’s debut release, the EP “Performing Chicken”, most tracks of which ended up on Nishita’s debut full-length “Mark’s Keyboard Repair” in 1995. Introducing his style of jazz-infused lounge funk, the lo-fi sounding record was led by the singles “Insects Are All Around Us” and “Cry”. Nishita released a second EP “Legitimate Pop Songs?” in 1996 recorded live at Rough Trade, before issuing a third EP “Third Version” the same year. The eclectic pop-infused, funk, soul and hip-hop album “Push the Button” arrived in 1998 earning widespread critical acclaim, after which Nishita contributed to the Beastie Boys’ third album “Hello Nasty” (1998).
The solo full-length “Change is Coming” arrived in 2001, followed by the EP “Love Stains: A Demo” in 2002, and “Demo? Or Demolition” in 2004. In 2005 the keyboardist and record producer issued his fourth-full-length “Father Demo Square” before beginning his fruitful contributions to the Omar Rodriguez Lopez Group in which he recorded on five albums from 2006-2007.
Nishita continued to collaborate with the Beastie Boys, memorably recording on the 2007 album “The Mix-Up” and 2011’s “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two” in 2011. These collaborations along with others including Big Sir, the John Butler Trio and Yo Gabba Gabba have developed Nishita into a musically versatile artist, which is showcased on his subsequent solo albums “Brand New By Tomorrow” in 2007, “Stand Up For Your Rice!” in 2007, and “Songs From Studio D” in 2011.
Live reviews
Money Mark has always been one of my favorite musicians, a tongue-in-cheek rap artist just like his beastie boys brethren, of whom of which I have to thank for the knowledge of his existence many moons ago, so what do you do when you when you you have a chance to go to see him live? You get in the damn car and you drive to the venue and you enjoy the hell out of yourself.
The crowd was wild, this was a different type of concert than I was used to, he was playing with a few guests, such as jack johnson via a projector and live he was doing some songs with Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ad-Rock from the beastie boys. It was amazing to watch them jump all around together, and it's a surreal experience, seeing the genres of music mix in to such a wonderful sound to my ears, like an amalgamation of rock, punk, and the whitest hip hop you've ever heard.
I even stayed after to get the guys autograph, and even though he's not the biggest artist in the world, that autograph still means a lot to me, hanging on the wall in my den.
It would be unfair to say jazz and hip hop artist Mark Ramos Nishita is only known for his collaboration with the worldwide successful Beastie Boys. He has been producing and releasing his own solo music since the debut record 'Mark's Keyboard Repair' in 1995 and has amassed a fanbase all of his own.
He is on a one man mission to prove hip hop is not only a young man's game as he saunters onto stage in suit and tie to join his accompanying band. He barely stays still the whole performance as he runs from side to side onstage or climbs atop various stage elements. The crowd cheers him on during these antics and this seems to only spur him on further. He runs through the fan favourites of 'Hand In Your Head' and 'Maybe I'm Dead' before taking to his keyboard for a couple of jazz heavy numbers. Although a number of fans were expecting a Beastie Boys cover, Mark proves his own discography is enough to create an awesome show.
sean-ward
