Factoid:Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will be performing at 9:30 p.m. Thursday at Copper Dragon.

Since 1998, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe has been a mission to express rhythms and relative emotions as a fourth dimension through the use of music. Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will bring the fourth dimension to the club-goers of Carbondale when it hits the stage at 9:30 p.m. Thursday at Copper Dragon.

Described as a “highly energized funk machine,” KDTU members Denson (sax), Brian Jordan (guitar), Ron Johnson (bass), David Veith (keyboard), Chris Littlefield (trumpet) and John Staten (drums) have gained national and international recognition for its marathon all-night performances.

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Denson’s musical career really began in 1989 when the California native recorded and toured with rock ‘n’ roller Lenny Kravitz for almost four years on the albums “Let Love Rule” and “Mama Said.” It was also during this time that Denson’s first brush with name recognition came with his collaboration with DJ Greyboy on the dance hall track “Unwind Your Mind” which gained great popularity in European clubs.

“I remember touring with Lenny overseas and hearing that tune in every club we went to after gigs,” Denson said in his official bio.

1992 was the year Karl Denson chose to break out from Lenny Kravitz’s shadow and show the world what he had to offer and prove his mettle. He was recruited by Minor Music, a German jazz label – which also had signed James Brown horn men Fred Wesley, Pee Wee Willis and Maceo Parker – and spent the following four years recording four acoustic jazz albums. “Blackened Red Snapper,” “Herbal Turkey Breast,” “Chunky Pecan Pie” and “Baby Food” demonstrated his abilities as a composer and as a master jazz saxophone player.

From ’92 to ’94, Denson was busy touring with not only Kravitz, but also Fred Wesley and Denson’s own quintet. In ’94, he opted to leave Kravitz’s group to focus on his own aspirations. He helped form the Greyboy Allstars with DJ Greyboy and became one of the largest club draws in the country producing sounds in the realm of groovy acid jazz. That musical tradition has continued with Tiny Universe while carrying on the traditions of funk masters such as James Brown while incorporating elements by newer artists such as Outkast.

“After 10 records, you feel like you’ve enriched someone’s life,” Denson said. “The idea is to find something I like and help it cross over. I like and listen to all kinds of music. We’ve always just played what we like, and the audience came to us.”

For more information on Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, go to www.karldenson.com.