Tag Archives: Galactic

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Galactic Returns and Conquers

June 27th, 2011

Galactic – Brooklyn Bowl – June 24, 2011


Wait around long enough and pretty much any band will come through New York City to play a gig. But some acts are just built for return visit after return visit. Take Galactic: Undoubtedly a New Orleans band through and through, they’re also quite at home in NYC, returning to Brooklyn Bowl last week for an extended run of shows barely a season after their last trip here. No matter, on Friday night the room was packed for the last show of the four-night stretch that brought out special guests and at least one turn through their vast repertoire.

Friday’s set started hot with touring-guest Corey Henry leading the charge on trombone. With nearly a full week of shows, each night brought a different kind of energy and Friday’s had a dark, ethnic tinge. There are a handful of songs in Galactic’s bag of tricks that have an Eastern European/Middle Eastern flavor, including “Balkan Wedding” and “Boban (Mere Yaara Dildara),” and the five-piece played them all to funky, sweaty perfection. Theirs is an assembly-line funk that seemingly will go on forever unless someone accidentally knocks the plug out of the wall. Corey Glover plugged right in with vocals on several tunes and Sex Mob’s Steven Bernstein added some groovy dignity to the night with some superlative additions on trumpet and the rarely seen slide trumpet.

Every lull in the night seemed to be matched by a doubled-up high. Rob Mercurio was an endless supply of impossibly funky bass riffs that had the crowd bumping from front to back. Friday night was date night at Brooklyn Bowl with lots of grinding couples, free flowing beer and an incredibly heterogeneous audience. The thing everyone had in common was smiles, plus the hopes of a funkified weekend ahead. Until the next time Galactic rolls through town. —A. Stein

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Simply Unpredictable

February 28th, 2011

Galactic/Trombone Shorty – Terminal 5 – February 26, 2011

Trombone Shorty - Terminal 5 - February 26, 2011

A Galactic show is a truly unpredictable event: Every time through it’s a different sound, a different set list, a different menagerie of guests and opening acts. And Saturday night’s Mardi Gras party at Terminal 5 was no different. You know how the janitor always has the master key to get into any room in the building? Well Galactic has the master key to the grooves, a never-ending supply of bass and drums to get even the most leaden of feet moving.

More than any band I’ve seen, Galactic is always willing to step into the backing-band mode for their guests. On Saturday, the roster included Corey Henry on trombone, Cyril Neville and Corey Glover on vocals and members of the openers, Trombone Shorty and High and Mighty Brass Band. The guests allowed the band to morph from one form to another—Meters-esque grooving with Neville fronting, N’awlins big-band bombast with more horns than fingers to count them and then raging classic-rock cover band with Glover singing “Crosstown Traffic” and “How Many More Times” with aplomb. With Stanton Moore and Rob Mercurio laying down the funk and the psychedelic Day-Glo lights swirling around the equipment and stage, the band plowed through a couple of hours of party time that lasted well into the morning. The most expansive “Whoa!” moments were provided on the older material in which Rich Vogel was given free reign and took off with deep, exploratory organ and keyboard solos.

But perhaps the most unpredictable moments came from the undercard. Proving to be more headliners than a warm-up act, and equal parts James Brown, Louis Armstrong and Little Feat (all covered during their set in part or whole), Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue were a revelation. And their lengthy time onstage was a party before the party. The backing band, brimming with talent, was like a king-size bed in a hotel room that Shorty hopped up and down on like a kid on vacation. Brooklyn’s High and Mighty Brass Band played in between sets, second-lining into the middle of the crowd to keep the party going. And what would a party be without the craziest participant of them all? I speak of Jimmy McMillan, representing the Rent Is Too Damn High Party, who brought his soapbox to the stage. And who would have predicted that? —A. Stein

Photos courtesy of Greg Notch | notch.org

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Mardi Gras Madness at Terminal 5 on Saturday Night

February 23rd, 2011


The NOLA-based instrumental-funk outfit Galactic has been bringing shake-your-hips music to the masses since 1994. They started out as an eight-piece with Theryl DeClouet (House Man) as their singer. Over the years, they’ve paired down to five and parted ways with DeClouet. But no doubt, they’re still bringing the funk: Witness last year’s Ya-Ka-May, with notable sit-ins from Irma Thomas, Allen Toussaint and the dynamic Trombone Shorty, whose own band opens the show. Of course, there will be plenty of other special guests, like Corey Glover, Corey Henry, Cyril Neville and the High and Mighty Brass Band. You never know what to expect from Galactic (above, playing “Heart of Steel” last year). They could just as easily bump a hip-hop groove, drop some smooth jazz or rip a terrific Zeppelin cover. See for yourself at Terminal 5 on Saturday. But make sure you act fast ’cause it looks like this one could sell out.

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Three Nights of Funk with Galactic

June 1st, 2010


The New Orleans-based instrumental-funk outfit Galactic has been bringing shake-your-hips music to the masses since 1994. They started out as an eight-piece with Theryl DeClouet (House Man) as their singer. Over the years, they’ve paired down to five and parted ways with DeClouet. But they’re still bringing the funk: Witness this year’s Ya-Ka-May, with notable sit-ins from Irma Thomas, Allen Toussaint, Trombone Shorty (who opens for Michael Franti & Spearhead at The Beach at Governors Island on Thursday) and the Rebirth Brass Band. You never know what to expect from Galactic (above, playing “Heart of Steel” with Cyril Neville on Jimmy Kimmel Live!). They could just as easily bump a hip-hop groove, drop some smooth jazz or rip a terrific Zeppelin cover. See for yourself when (featuring Cyril Neville and Rebirth’s Corey Henry) they play Brooklyn Bowl on Thursday (Living Colour singer Corey Glover sits in and Some Cat from Japan opens), Friday (High and Mighty Brass Band opens) and Saturday (Buzz Universe opens).

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Galactic Brings the Funk

February 8th, 2010

Galactic – Terminal 5 – February 5, 2010

Galactic - Terminal 5 - February 5, 2010

One of the few things New York City and New Orleans have in common is that each city needs little excuse for a party. Day ending in y? Party! Home team is playing this weekend? Party! So put the finest purveyors of New Orleans funk onstage at NYC’s Terminal 5 on a Friday, two nights before the big game featuring the Saints, and you shouldn’t be surprised by what you get—a big, fat “Who Dat?” fiesta!

Galactic got deep into it from the get-go. It seems they have a new twist whenever they hit the road, and this time was no different with trombonist Corey Henry, of Rebirth Brass Band, expanding the horn section and adding vocals, and Cyril Neville, of NOLA stalwarts the Meters and the Neville Brothers, joining in on percussion and vocals. The boys in the band were more than happy to play backup for long stretches of the evening, ceding the stage to their guests as the set twisted through dark gypsy funk, some hip-hop and plenty of down-home funk.

The unmistakable highlight of the evening came when Tea Leaf Green’s Trevor Garrod and Josh Clark—their band opened and seemed to squeeze a Grateful Dead-show’s worth of music into their generous 75-minute slot—joined Galactic onstage for a couple of tunes that were “by request” from visitors to the band’s Web site. The result was a fantastic detour into some classic rock as Galactic once again became the backing band to their guests, who nailed covers of the Band’s take on the Holland/Dozier/Holland classic “Don’t Do It” and the Rolling Stones’ “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking.” Clark turned the funk party into a raging rock and roll show, peaking with the guitar jam out of the Stones tune, which just may have single-handedly averted the path of the snowstorm coming up the East Coast. —A. Stein

Photos courtesy of Dino Perrucci | dinoperrucciphotography.com

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A Funky Friday at Terminal 5

February 3rd, 2010


Sure, it’s taken the Saints more than 40 years to reach the Super Bowl, but you won’t need to wait anywhere near that long to get your own NOLA fix. Because where funk and jazz collide, you’ll find Galactic. And that collision will be at Terminal 5 this Friday. Virtuoso drummer Stanton Moore holds together this longtime instrumental group. But percussionist and vocalist Cyril Neville, of the Neville Brothers, and trombonist Corey Henry, of Rebirth Brass Band, will join Galactic onstage. (Henry also sat in on Galactic’s new album, Ya-Ka-May, out next Tuesday.) Plus, as an added bonus, the jammy Tea Leaf Green will be opening. So get there early—expect to hear at least one Zeppelin cover—and get your weekend started right.

We know you’ll have so much fun seeing Galactic (above, playing “Hustle Up” with Boots Riley) that The House List is giving away two tickets to the show. Want to win them? Then just fill out the form below, listing your name, e-mail address, which show you’re trying to win tickets to (Galactic, 2/5) and a brief message telling us why you could use a free night of the funk. The winner will be notified on Friday.

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