Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Utrecht, Netherlands, November 1, 2019
Here we go, friends…the last month of the Immigrance tour! Diehard Snarky Puppy fans know that the band’s album We Like It Here was recorded in Utrecht, so the Netherlands hold a special place in our hearts. The Dutch fans came out in droves to the venue Tivoli Vredenburg for another great show loaded with new tunes – five, to be exact! This is Jamison Ross’s first night with the Pups since October 5, and he kills it with some sensational drumming. He stays on for a week before Jason “JT” Thomas arrives for the remaining three weeks of touringContinue Reading
Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Aarhus, Denmark, October 25, 2019
After listening to several recordings of international Snarky Puppy concerts, I’ve noticed that European fans give Snarky Puppy an equal mix of focus and enthusiasm. They’re not rowdy, nor are they tuned out. They give the entire band their undivided attention and applaud at the right times, which helps feed the band’s performance. The Danish crowd at Train is a prime example. If you want to hear a solid set with mostly new material from Immigrance, check this show out! Here, the dynamic duo of Mark Lettieri and Chris McQueen takes center stage with several blistering guitar solos. MichaelContinue Reading
Funky Hulaween Saturday and Sunday: Let the Funk Flow
Saturday might as well be called ‘Soulday’ as this may be the strongest single day soul lineup ever with The Original Nth Power, Cautious Clay, Durand Jones and the Indicators, and Leon Bridges. By the time Saturday rolls around, everyone’s fully in the groove and the vibe is amazing. On top of that list for soulful souls, there’s some special treats for the funksters and blues crews as well. I’ll jump into my target schedule right here – The Original Nth Power as the name implies brings the band back together with their original 5 – Nate Edgar (bass), NikkiContinue Reading
Funky Hulaween Thursday and Friday: An Atypical Guide
Hulaween, held in Live Oak, Florida at the Spirit of Suwannee Music Park is one of the biggest, most magical and musically diverse fall festivals in the Eastern U.S. The heavy hitting lineup is always headlined by String Cheese Incident and a rotating group of additional headliners leaning toward jam band and electronic music. Prior to 2015, Bear Creek was a funk festival held at the same location a few weeks later in the fall and was a favorite of that fan base. ‘Hula’ took the baton from Bear Creek starting in 2015 and I’ve attended every Hulaween since asContinue Reading
Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Oslo, Norway, October 22, 2019
Hey hey! I’m back with some more reviews of the Snarky Puppy Immigrance concerts. On October 22, 2019 the Pups commenced the FINAL European leg of the tour in Oslo, Norway! The lineup at the Sentrum Scene featured a full horn section with Mike “Maz” Maher, Chris Bullock, Bob Reynolds, and Justin Stanton doubling on trumpet and keyboards. Mark Lettieri was on guitar, Shaun Martin played keyboards, Marcelo Woloski handled percussion, Jason “JT” Thomas sat behind the drum kit, and the expert bassist and bandleader Michael League rounded it out. Forq opened for Snarky Puppy. Several other members joined throughoutContinue Reading
A Look Back: Snarky Puppy’s The Only Constant
Snarky Puppy is my favorite band and for me the most innovative and unique sounding over the last 25 years. I got hip to them ‘late’, back in 2013 when they were already barnstorming around the U.S. I had a chance to see them at Bear Creek Music and Arts Festival back in 2010, but somehow didn’t make it. But back on September 12, 2013, I got pulled hard into the Snarky Puppy vortex at a show at Terminal West in Atlanta. After I left that show not quite sure what I had just witnessed and became fully ‘puppified,’ IContinue Reading
Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Ann Arbor, MI – September 8th, 2019
This show took place at the beautiful Hill Auditorium at the University of Michigan. This particular room is very lively and more suited towards hosting acoustic and orchestral performances; however, this mix sounds great, and the band is still as high energy as ever. This show features mostly new music and lots of these versions sound quite different from the album versions. Something I thought was cool and didn’t notice until writing this, was that every song was grouped together alphabetically! I wonder if this was intentional. Track-By-Track Even Us – McQueen starts this one off like usual with aContinue Reading
Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Dallas, TX, October 5, 2019
Sixteen years ago – at the time of the Immigrance tour in 2019 – Michael League and his friends founded Snarky Puppy at the University of North Texas. On October 5, 2019, the Pups ended the final North American leg of the Immigrance tour at the Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas, so it all came full circle. For this show, longtime SP stalwarts Mark Lettieri and Shaun Martin sat in with the band. And if that wasn’t enough, Jason “JT” Thomas and Robert “Sput” Searight hopped onstage to play with Jamison Ross & Keita Ogawa on “Tio Macaco.” JT isContinue Reading
Snarky Puppy Concert Review: Orlando, FL, September 25, 2019
Snarky Puppy always gets a positive reception in Florida, and this audience at the Plaza in Orlando is truly dynamite! Maybe it’s the scores of musicians and music lovers based in Florida…or maybe it’s the fact that Bob Reynolds and Jamison Ross are both from Jacksonville. Who knows? This show also has TWO special guest musicians that are polar opposites, but amazingly gifted in their own ways. Every single band member kills it in this show, but one of my favorite solos of the night belongs to one of the guest musicians. Read on to find out more! House ofContinue Reading
Passing of a Giant “Pee Wee” Ellis
Just learned that the great, great saxophonist Pee Wee Ellis has passed. I’d been a lifelong fan of his work and back in 2010 I was looking around to see how to catch one of my new favorite bands Lettuce for the first time. At the same time I was checking out Maceo Parker’s live shows and saw that both were going to be in Live Oak, Fl. I looked it up and thought, “What the hell was in Live Oak?” and then found the fantastic Bear Creek Music Festival! Lo and behold, Maceo and Lettuce were gonna both beContinue Reading