“Jazz does not belong to one race or culture, but is a gift that America has given the world.” —Ahmad Alaadeen
““A guy walks up to me and asks ‘What’s Punk?’. So I kick over a garbage can and say ‘That’s punk!’. So he kicks over a garbage can and says ‘That’s Punk?’, and I say ‘No that’s trendy!” – Billie Joe Armstrong
I could wax poetic about the sorry lack of jazz in a town like Los Angeles that used to feature Dizz Gillespie and John Coltrane blowing horns at the Roosevelt or how I grew up listening to jazz at a pool hall in Toronto to which I would trek out through the snow at 11pm but no one really gives a shit, which I guess is the point.
So proudly, I present to ye heathens a posse of rogues keeping the torch lit for one of the most alternative forms of popular music to ever come out of America and they are even doing that with attitude. Here is a rundown on Jazz Punks:
MusicZeitgeist.com: Who?
Sal Polcino (guitar), Danny Kastner (piano), Robby Elfman (sax), Mike Polcino (bass), Hugh Elliott (drums)
MZ: What?
Our musical backgrounds are diversely-styled – a solid blend of both East and West coast mentalities. At the root of it, Jazz Punks strives to serve up classic jazz styles in an electrifying, unique manner – that appeals to the jazz layman as much as the jazz aficionado. We often meld these classic jazz styles with deep undercurrents of classic rock – from Hendrix to Nirvana to Zeppelin to Clash: classic jazz, uniquely interpreted and arranged into a more widely accessible and widely embraceable style. No 8 min., self-absorbed solos. No charts. And mere replication and imitation is verboten.
We each agree there is a significant place for classic jazz, of course – we love it, and are deeply influenced by it. But, Jazz Punks fans should never leave a show feeling like they’ve visited a museum – a “club where time stood still”. We want listeners of all ages, backgrounds and tastes to share what WE feel as we play – that something unique, exciting, and challenging is happening here.
MZ: Why?
Jazz Punks’ seeks to reintroduce the pure, organic nature of music back to the masses – Punking jazz – while preserving due respect for the original magic of the swing, the tunes, and the artist.
MZ: Until When?
The cows come home.
MZ: Where?
Today, Los Angeles. Tomorrow – The World!
Find out more at:
Official Site
www.jazzpunks.com
Buy Jazz Punks music at:
iTunes
Amazon (CD hardcopy)
Also on Rhapsody and soon to be on Pandora!
Listen now to “‘Led Gillespie” by Jazz Punks at MusicZeitgeist.com
* To see your act in MZ’s Artist Profile, submit to our gig listing at Sonicbids today!
(not all acts are selected)
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