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NEWPORT JAZZ FESTIVAL is the best ‘jazz’ festival in the United States, keeping true to its origins, history, and legends while simultaneously bringing forth new and emerging artists and styles. The 2026 event sustains the NJF run of excellence with its stacked stellar lineup. It’s an abundance of riches, as the festival packs more talent across four stages and three days than most fans will see in a whole year or more! Each day has a legendary headliner closing out on the main Fort Stage: Vulpeck on Friday, Kamasi Washington and Chief Adjuah celebrating Miles, Coltrane and Rollins on Saturday,Continue Reading

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Masterclass in Modern Guitar Virtuosity Get ready to witness Matteo Mancuso, one of the young lions of the modern electric guitar at GroundUp Music Festival Alberobello June 26-28, 2026. In the process of researching and writing my full GUMF Italy Preview, Matteo was one that I hadn’t previously known, but got me pumped up for the annual festival put on by Snarky Puppy. The Sicilian phenomenon has really sprung up on global music scene the last few years by playing with a very unique technique that combining mind-bending speed with stunning melodic sensitivity. In this spotlight, I go deeper intoContinue Reading

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Snarky Puppy’s Somni tour kicked off Wednesday, April 8th, at The Eastern in Atlanta! It was a full circle moment for me, starting with the Somni recording sessions in Utrecht, Netherlands, in January 2025; the release of the album in November 2025; and me naming it my Album of the Year for 2025 (link to review)! Now, they’re in the midst of the U.S. tour—I attended the first four in Atlanta, Charleston, Durham, and Charlotte and will be at 7 of the first 14, with Red Bank, Philly, and Nashville coming up later this month.  Here are my overall observationsContinue Reading

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GroundUP Music Festival 2026 just announced its exceptionally strong lineup. This year will be the 10th annual, and the organizers Michael League and Paul Lehr pulled out all the stops, bringing in Flying Lotus, Patrice Rushen, Rickie Lee Jones, Bilal, and Isaiah Sharkey, among others. Let’s start with the connection to the recently departed and heavily revered D’Angelo. In a recent YouTube interview, Michael League stated, “I don’t know that you can play music in 2025 without being influenced by D’Angelo even if you never heard D’Angelo. Whenever you go somewhere and you hear someone playing drums in this way,Continue Reading

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This year was epic for my live music journey having seen well over 200 sets of music and recorded over 80 live performances. The first half of the year had an incredible run of live shows starting with the recording sessions for Snarky Puppy’s album with the Metropole Orkest, “Somni” in Utrecht, Netherlands. That one was recorded professionally by a dozen or so cameras and the videos are being released one by one. After that, I had an mammoth string of music starting with the GroundUP Music Festival in Miami Beach, rolling right into my first Jam Cruise and thenContinue Reading

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Suwannee Amp Jam has quickly made its way onto my favorite festivals list. Year 1 in 2025 had an amazing vibe and a terrfic lineup. Amp Jam has just announced a magnificent sophomore lineup and FunkCity.net will be there to soak in the good vibrations. Following in the traditions of the Spirit of Suwannee Music Park (SOSMP), the lineup features a heady selection of jam bands as a hat tip to the Wanee festival, and funk bands harkening back to Bear Creek. It all takes place on the glorious Amphitheater Stage so there’s plenty of time to socialize and relax.Continue Reading

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Snarky Puppy released Somni on November 21, and it’s one of the best albums you’ve ever heard and will ever hear. It’s already on my deserted island list and a certain (multi) Grammy winner. I’m confident that once people hear it, they will be astounded based on its sonic impact, novel approach to melodies and rhythms, range of emotions stirred, musicality, and technical achievements. Now that the superlatives are out there, I’ll offer up the rationale for the buildup. Somni was recorded with the Metropole Orkest under the direction of Jules Buckley over the course of three days (two sessionsContinue Reading

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Chimera is the second (and final!?) single from Snarky Puppy’s upcoming album “Somni,” and audio was recently released on streaming platforms with the video on YouTube. The full album is scheduled to be released November 21st. Here’s my review of this breathtaking track and the accompanying video. I was in the room for all the recording sessions in Utrecht back in January 2025. You can read about that experience here – Somni: A Dreamlike Experience. Chimera is the most unique cut on an album of ‘dreams’ as the standalone ‘nightmare.’ It was/is the third track on the album and here’sContinue Reading

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Waves Upon Waves, the first single from Snarky Puppy’s upcoming album “Somni,” was just released on streaming platforms, and the video on YouTube. The full album is scheduled to be released November 21st. Breaking with my usual approach, I’m going to review each track as they’re released and then the full album. I’m coming from the perspective of having been in the room for all the recording sessions in Utrecht back in January 2025. You can read about that experience here – Somni: A Dreamlike Experience. I will say that watching and listening to an individual track cannot capture theContinue Reading

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Organ trios have been a mainstay of the jazz-funk-fusion stable since the 60s. In recent years, there’s been a surge in popularity of the format, as the B3 can emulate a broad range of sounds and the small format enables each of the musicians to stretch out in a big way. Deitch, Teitel Fribush (DTF) is a powerhouse within that realm, and the newly released  “Another Side of the Sound” brings fresh ideas while maintaining ligature to tradition. As described in the liner notes, the album was recorded directly to a Tascam 388 tape machine to give it that old-school feel.Continue Reading