Events

[FUNK] For their first studio offering in eight years, Brooklyn-by-way-of-Texas fusion funksters Snarky Puppy have hunkered down to produce something surprisingly moody. Which isn’t to say the rebellious, jazzy spirit at the band’s core isn’t present for Culcha Vulcha, out last Friday on the Ground Up label. The 14-ish member collective is still very much rooted in the marriage of complex melodies with ever-shifting rhythms, borrowing styles and sensibilities from the world over to create a singular, rather anarchic sound. The triumph has always been the way the music remains quite listenable and often dance-worthy—exuberant, even—despite the far-flung range of inputs. After a series of live releases, including the Family Dinner compilations that featured vocalists on pop’s fringes and significantly raised the band’s profile, (not to mention a 2014 Grammy win for their Lalah Hathaway collaboration), Culcha Vulcha feels slightly overcast and introspective. Instead of the devil-may-care strutting that characterizes the live recordings, there’s more stealth-in-step here, coming across in the carefully layered percussion and brass of “Grown Folks,” which gets artfully blended with some synthy textures. “Palermo” emerges from hushed, dreamy beginnings, only to melt back into them after achieving a full gallop as something likened to a blaxploitation soundtrack interlude. “Gemini” cooks along at an even pace, spiked with an addictive, melancholy lilt, and “Beep Box” cobbles an oddly romantic slow dance from an hodgepodge of swirling electronic flourishes with just the slightest hint of hip-hop. The jazz-funk groove is very much alive through Culcha Vulcha, particularly on “GO” and “Tarova,” it just feels more meticulously strategized and a bit slick. But that doesn’t deter from the fact that, left to their own devices in the studio, Snarky Puppy digs deeper… and there’s really nothing wrong with that. They come to the Town Ballroom on Saturday, May 7 presented by Funtime Presents.