Patrick & Eugene

A pop/rock duo, Patrick & Eugene made their name in England from 2003 onward with a series of performances and recordings that combined '60s pop, psychedelia, Dixieland jazz, and the influences of Afro-Cuban jazz, '60s reggae, the music of John Cage, and '20s pop, all of it mashed together into something that sounds like a modern incarnation of the Bonzo Dog Band. Percussionist Patrick Dawes -- a drum-playing, object-banging fool by most accounts, as well as programmer and occasional singer for the duo -- is best known for his work with Groove Armada. Eugene Bezodis sings as well as playing reeds and winds. Their 2004 recording of "The Birds and the Bees" was picked up by Gordon's Gin in England for a television advertising campaign that put the duo on the map, and later in 2004 they released their debut album, Postcard from Summerisle, on the Tummy Touch label. ~ Bruce Eder