This Friday, the jazz-funk-rock band Galactic will bring their original sound to the Barrymore Theatre, 2090 Atwood Ave.
With the release of Ruckus last October, the band merged to incorporate a new sound. The elements of hip-hop and electronic music, influenced by Dan the Automator, the producer of , have inspired great reviews within the U.S. and also Japan.
The six-member band features singer Theryl \Houseman"" de Clouet, bassist Robert Mercurio, drummer Stanton Moore, guitarist Jeff Raines, organ and keyboardist Rich Vogel and saxophonist Ben Ellman. The Daily Cardinal recently talked with Jeff Raines about their new album and upcoming projects.
Mike Doughty is presently touring with you. How long has Mike been performing with Galactic?
We've only toured with him for about six shows now, but we've known him pretty well for awhile. Probably a year ago is when we first performed with him.
OK, now I am really interested in your new album. You have received many good reviews on it for its electronic/hip-hop influence. I am just curious why you chose to blend an electronic sound into jam-funk-rock in ?
We just wanted to try something a little different. This is a more modern approach in order to maintain a certain organic feeling with electronic music. In future albums, we will definitely stay in this direction, but we're definitely not interested in shifting to a hard electronic sound. By incorporating a more electronic beat, we have maintained a better song structure and may have somewhat expanded listeners; however, we are not trying to get a chance on the radio.
Why did you choose Dan the Automator to help you produce ?
We were really just looking for a producer and we chose him. He was available and we are also big fans of his other projects.
Will you keep Dan the Automator as producer for your next album?
No, we have really enjoyed working with Dan on , but we are definitely going to have a different producer for our next album. However, right now we are not sure who that will be.
Which track do you feel is the best on and why?
I would have to say ""Bittersweet."" The reason why is because it has better vocal tunes recording-wise.
Aside from , have you worked with any other DJ's in the past?
Yes, in the past we've worked with Triple Threat DJ's which is a group of local [New Orleans] DJ's. We've also worked many times with V Trip.
Well, since you are coming to town, how do feel about Madison's music scene?
Well, we have been touring in Madison ever since we've started [in 1995]. The Madison musical scene has a good vibe. In New Orleans, there are many jazz musicians, but since Madison is a college town, there are also lots of students into jazz. So the New Orleans and Madison music scene is somewhat similar in that aspect.
What would you say has been your favorite gig so far?
Hmmm. That's a tough one. I'd have to go with Bonnaroo [Tenn.]. We really enjoy performing there. This summer will be our third performance at Bonnaroo. We also recently just got back from Japan and we really enjoyed doing gigs there as well.
How did Galactic ever get together in the first place?
We pretty much met up in college at Loyola University in Illinois. That's where I met Stanton and Rich. We ended up on the road six or seven years ago and that's where we met the other members as well as other bands.
What bands were you originally inspired by?
The Meters-we were really drawn to The Meters at first because of their punk sound, P-Funk [jazz, funk, R&B] and James Brown.
Who is responsible for writing the majority of your songs?
It is up by democracy. An idea will come up and then be refined by all of us. If anything exciting comes up, we always make a note of it. Sometimes we also get ideas while doing live shows.
Where do you come up with the titles to your songs, especially the instrumental tracks that don't have any vocals?
Well, names like ""Black-eyed Pea,"" ""Two Clowns"" and ""Uptown Odyssey"" mostly come from strange anecdotes. ""Bongo Joe"" is named after a one-man band that inspired us.
Have you started recording a new album yet?
Yes, now that we've just recently opened our own studio in New Orleans we are able to turn our eyes to our next projects. Right now, we've just been making demos. We are still looking for a new producer, though.
Well, Jeff, thank you for your time. Do you have anything that you want to tell your fans in Madison?
Tell them we are really looking forward to coming and performing in Madison.
