PRESSING MATTERS LP
Pressing Matters is the result of a truly global collaboration, featuring an incredible lineup of guests including Calvin Rogers, Carlin Muccular, Munir Zakee, Tony Momrelle, Marcio Doctor, Paula Champion, Michael League, Horn House, Nate Werth, Jason ‘JT’ Thomas, Lil John Roberts, and Robin Mullarkey. Sessions took place across Atlanta, London, Hamburg, Dallas, and Los Angeles—each city adding its own flavor to the sound.
who?
Producer, composer and keyboard nut Simon Grey’s signature sound is a blend of jazz, polyphonic badness and layered syncopated grooves that’s as soulful as it is sophisticated //
Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, Simon's musical journey began early. To the annoyance of this piano teacher, he refused to play what was written and challenged the notion that “everything’s already been done” in music. Surely there is so much more to explore.
That spirit of exploration shaped his early sonic world. Late-night mixtape deep-dives with friends introduced him to heroes and giants like Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Stevie Wonder, and Joe Zawinul. One haunting sound from those sessions refused to leave his head: “What was that oboe-ish thing?” he asked. Thats the ARP 2600 synthesizer my friend …
That moment sparked a lifelong obsession with analog synthesis vintage keyboards and all things polyphonic - an obsession still far from under control. “It was the point of no return. I had to find that sound. I had to have those boxes." With jazz harmony, synth-based orchestration, Garibaldi-inspired linear grooves, and textures spanning classical to disco, Simon’s sound is always deeply layered, carefully arranged, and fiercely self-contained — where production and performance fuel one another in a cycle of creative energy.
Originally a drummer, Simon eventually shifted to jazz keys and production — but the drummer in him never left and drum programming still plays a big part in his approach. After formal jazz piano studies, he relocated to Europe in 2005, joining forces in the studio and on stage with UK soul heavyweights Incognito and Reel People. His unique production voice soon resonated across club culture, earning remix credits with KneeDeep for Jamiroquai, Elton John, and Bootsy Collins, along with his underground releases like The Galactica Suite and Prophecy. As a player, he’s shared stages with the NDR Bigband, Deodato and Darryl Jones,
The ‘Pressing Matters’ Sessions begun in 2018. Eclectic, ambitious, and recorded across multiple continents, the project brings together musical heroes as collaborators and explores his own uncharted sonic and harmonic terrain.
Simon is excited to be a part of the GroundUP family since 2025
