With a wildly colorful, multi-screen retro workout music video, Philadelphia’s Tweed had fun in style with the release of “Moves.” The electro-rock powerhouse puts on a bright display of 80s-themed jazzercise and old-school fitness in a Wes Anderson-esqe compilation. Driven by an undeniable groove of thick bass, smooth vocals, and electrifying melody, the song is something you can kick back with, or dance to.
Tweed cites hometown heroes The Disco Biscuits and Lotus as inspiration, but their music draws from indie rock, electronica, and disco – a combo of Phoenix meets Daft Punk. Having recently added violinist and multi-instrumentalist Charlie Field to the band, you can expect something unique from this lineup as Tweed prepares to release their debut full-length album.
“The song (“Moves”) was a collaboration since its inception,” notes Tweed drummer, Joe Vela. “From writing in a cabin we rented in North Carolina while on tour, producing with Jeff “Mud” Mahajan and Jesse Miller of Lotus in the studio, to designing the film shoot with our director, Nicholas J Piser, and the help from our film team who made it happen, it was a big team effort.”
“Moves,” the single for the video, is out now on all streaming platforms and will be featured on Tweed’s debut full-length of the same name expected before the end of 2019. Having already performed at Camp Bisco, Peach Festival, Beardfest, and their hometown curated SENSORiUM Festival, the band has their eyes set on a big 2020.
On September 7, the Greenwich Village event space (Le) Poisson Rouge was set for an intimate evening with SPAGA, a quasi-jazz project from the mind and fingers of Disco Biscuits keyboard player Aron Magner. Tables were draped with black cloths, lit by candles, and set with other accoutrements while on stage waited a baby grand piano, an upright bass on its side, and a full drum kit. Upon entering before the army of Bisco fans, the mood and setting were surprisingly sophisticated.
As The Disco Biscuits are generally known for their dance-inducing electronic music and laser beams, an open floor plan with room to move was the expectation. Alas, the performance did circumvent most expectations but lacked the confidence, or boldness, of traditional jazz stylings.
What is most interesting about SPAGA is the clear intersection between the old-fashioned and the new-age. It’s a classic trio set up with modern gadgetry intact. A synthesizer sat atop the grand piano with an assortment of foot pedals beneath, and a laptop computer was situated right next to the bench. The upright bass ran through a full effects pedalboard beside a rock drum kit. Throughout the course of the 90-minute set, all of the above were put to good use.
While the bulk of the night’s music was pulled from the recently released album (SPAGA, out now via AM Records) the opener was a non-album number, appropriately titled “For The Table.” This set the tone for the rest of the night’s offerings as it featured a tantalizing hook to anchor the more loosely fastened sections of improvisation. A major highlight right off the bat was drummer Matt Scaranos’ incredible ownership of the kit. As the keys and bassist Jason Fratacelli repeated the songs melodic content, Scarano displayed an impressive command over every little detail on top of, inside, and outside the beat. The songs that followed like the albums opener “Creed” and “Resurrection” both find their strength in their composition, giving the listener moments to mellow in ambiance and elate with blistering rhythms.
SPAGA did cover a wide spectrum on Saturday. “Resurrection” sits on a hip-hop beat, while a totally unique take on Led Zeppelin’s “Black Dog” seemed to be just a tease at first, eventually playing out as the full song. Improvisation was there, but it didn’t feel so much like it was in a jazzy conversationalist sense. Instead, it seems SPAGA has taken to sticking with the jam-band formula of creating a pocket, building a steady groove to fill it, and elevating the energy to a peak.
Magner took to the microphone to comment that SPAGA is a project grown from wanting to reconnect with and explore an instrument that he was properly trained on but spent a long time away from, the acoustic piano. While there isn’t much comparison between SPAGA’s piano-laden presentations and The Disco Biscuits electronically driven material, they certainly feel like they could have been made in the same kitchen. There’s different ingredients, but similar flavors.
All in all, SPAGA is a unique interpretation through a time-tested setup. There are moments of familiarity laced throughout a set that is, for the most part, completely separated from what you normally would hear from Magner and Co. SPAGA will be at Resonance Music Festival in Slippery Rock, PA ON September 19 and can be heard on all streaming platforms now.
Setlist: For The Table, Creed, Resurrection, Black Dog, Dig*, Colors, Four Angels, Good Old Days, Bird
*Temporary song name. Magner stated that it’s currently untitled and being decided on social media by fans.
The Disco Biscuits are back. The Philly-based trance-fusion band has announced an extensive 23-date winter tour with several multi-day runs, including SI Hall at the New York State Fairgrounds in Syracuse on November 22 and 23, 2019.
The tour kicks off with two dates in McKees Rocks, PA at the Roxian Theatre on Nov. 14 and 15. The tour also includes the previously announced four-day run at the Playstation Theater for New Year’s Eve. The run marks the band’s 40th and final time performing there as the venue announced it will be closing at the end of December.
Photo: Stephen Olker, NYS Music
Tickets for the tour go on sale Friday, Sept. 6 at 10:00 a.m. local time. Ticketing information can be found on the band’s website here. See the full list of dates below.
The band issued a statement regarding the tour and timeline for their upcoming album:
“We’ve been teasing this for some time now, it feels so good to finally be able to share it with you. We are back…and back in a big way. New tours. New music. New Jams. 2019 and 2020 are going to be our best years yet and all of you are at the heart of it. Expect to see us a lot, expect the unexpected.
The first thing we’ve got for you is our winter tour starting in just a few weeks. We’re coming back to a few places we haven’t been to in a while, and others that we’ve seen a lot through the years. All will be sweat dripping off the ceiling, Bisco fire fueled nights.
The second is a new album…we’re already burning the midnight oil on this, and can’t wait for you to hear it. We plan on teasing some of these soon, and dropping them individually in early 2020, then a full album next summer. ‘Til then, we’ll be seeing you all quite a bit and spending every waking hour making sure this is the best of the Biscuits for all of us.”
Disco Biscuits Winter 2019-2020 Tour Dates: Oct. 5 – Breckenridge Brewery Hootenanny – Littleton, CO Nov. 14 – Roxian Theatre – McKees Rocks, PA Nov. 15 – Roxian Theatre – McKees Rocks, PA Nov. 16 – The National – Richmond, VA Nov. 17 – The National – Richmond, VA Nov. 20 – Higher Ground – Burlington, VT Nov. 21 – Higher Ground – Burlington, VT Nov. 22 – SI Hall – Syracuse, NY Nov. 23 – SI Hall – Syracuse, NY Dec. 11 – House of Blues – Orlando, FL Dec. 12 – Jannus Landing – St. Petersburg, FL Dec. 13 – Revolution – Ft. Lauderdale, FL Dec. 14 – Revolution – Ft. Lauderdale, FL Dec. 27 – PlayStation Theater – New York City Dec. 28 – PlayStation Theater – New York City Dec. 30 – PlayStation Theater – New York City Dec. 31 – PlayStation Theater – New York City Jan. 2 – Riviera Theatre – Chicago, IL Jan. 3 – Riviera Theatre – Chicago, IL Jan. 4 – Riviera Theatre – Chicago, IL Jan. 15 – The Ritz – Raleigh, NC Jan. 16 – The Fillmore – Charlotte, NC Jan. 17 – The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD Jan. 18 – The Fillmore – Silver Spring, MD
