We Like It Here changed my life.
After EDM (electronic dance music) skewed how I listen to music, Snarky Puppy was brought to my attention and wiped my slate clean. The track “Lingus” made me rethink everything I thought I knew about music.
Bandleader Michael League and his family of groundbreaking musicians have been making music for what seems like forever. In reality, it’s only been 12 years on mostly an underground level. This record, in my opinion, changed that.
The album’s opening track “Shofukan”, written by Michael League, will bring you on an incredible musical journey. From the opening guitar lick, you’re not really sure what you’re getting into. The horns shortly kick in and you find yourself entranced by this Eastern-European influenced groove. Multi-instrumentalist Justin Stanton provides this brilliant track with an absolutely beautiful trumpet solo. Just when you think this song is dying down and you’re preparing yourself for the next track, a melody comes in that you’ll find yourself singing along to days after. “Shofukan” is a powerful piece of music.
The albums energy only gets stronger with the next track, “What About Me?”. Featuring solos from guitarist Bob Lanzetti and drum virtuoso Larnell Lewis, this song makes you say to yourself, “Is this the same band?” Blurring the lines between jazz and rock, this is not a song to skip over.
Trumpeter Mike Maher provides his song writing skills for the next track, “Sleeper”. Shaun Martin shows off his serious skills with a talk box during his almost song-spanning solo. The passion can be heard throughout this song by everyone involved. Just another brilliant and powerful piece of music on this album.
“Kite”, a slow ballad, features solos from pianist Bill Laurance and Jay Jennings on flugelhorn. This track proves why Michael League is, in my opinion, one of the best songwriters of our time. If this track doesn’t tug at any of your heartstrings, clearly you have no emotions.
I skipped a few tracks on the album to end on “Lingus”, but they are not to be looked over. The closing track is an 11 minute brain melter. The groove on this track is a force to be reckoned with. Keyboardist Cory Henry completely nullifies any music theory you may have learned. Cory’s solo seems to go on indefinitely until the band comes back in, but he doesn’t stop until the track saddly ends! This song is the reason my love for this band grew.
The band released a DVD with copies of the CD of the live performances they did in studio for the recording of the album. Yes, the whole album was recorded live in front of an audience with no overdubs. It really shows how talented these guys are. If you haven’t before, I highly suggest listening to Snarky Puppy and any/all of the members in the band side projects. You can find it all on YouTube, but I suggest supporting the band.
These guys are the real deal.
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