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Hometown: Seattle, WA
Label: Kept Records www.kept-records.com
Management: Ben Bloom emancipatormusic@gmail.com
Website: www.polyrhythmics.com
Sounds Like: The Budos Band, The Whitefield Brothers, Fela Kuti, Quincy Jones, James Brown
Genre: Other
Original hard-driving, modern afro-beat and syncopated, horn-driven funk. That is the recipe that Polyrhythmics have crafted and delivered to packed clubs, and festival crowds up and down the west coast in the past 3 years. The 8 members of this dynamic world-beat orchestra, weave a clever web of deep, hypnotic grooves, creative, yet melodic interplay, clever horn-hooks, and searing solos that ignite every dance-floor that has laid before them
Founded in late 2010, Polyrhythmics was formed by Ben Bloom and Grant Schroff, who quickly gathered some of the most talented and highly sought-after performers in the North West to record an EP. Using primitive gear, and a “live, all in one -room”, low-budget recording technique, the band captured magic, the very 1st time the record button was pushed. The resulting 6 song EP became a cult classic and quickly sold out at shows. Highlights such as “Pink Wasabi”, and “Klompton” have since been re-released on 7 inch 45 by Electric Cowbell Records and Kept Records and are also sold-out.
In June of 2011, using crowd-sourced funds, the band released their first full length “Labrador”, and enjoyed immediate attention by such domestic tastemakers as DJ Prestige, Dusty Groove America and Fat Beats Records, and Internationally by Juno Records in the UK, Paris DJ’s in France and Jet Set Records in Japan. The 1st run of Cd’s quickly sold-out at shows, and the 1st single “The Imposter” was picked up and released by Kept Records on 7 inch in November of 2011 and enjoyed immediate success on radio stations far and wide, including KEXP. Shortly after the release, Polyrhythmics was named best band in Seattle, by Seattle Magazine in late Nov of 2011.
In Dec of 2011, Polyrhythmics signed with the prestigious booking agency, In The Pocket Artists Inc. and began touring the West Coast in early 2012 with a fever and a vigor not usually seen with a band this size. From the very 1st tour, the buzz about the band started to spread, and funk fans looking to get down Hard showed up in droves throughout the winter and early spring. Their non-stop, “leave it all on the stage”, 3+ hrs shows, slamming arrangements, top-notch musicianship and absolute command of their ethos, earned the band coveted spots at String Cheese Incident’s “Horning’s” Festival, the 2012 Summer Meltdown, The Eugene Celebration, NW Folk life Festival, The Black Sheep Families, “Furthermore” party, and the Hangtown Halloween Ball.
As 2013 begins, Polyrhythmics are ready to unleash their music to the world. With live repertoire of over 60 Original compositions, a new 7inch dropping on Kept records in Feb, and a full-length album to follow in the spring, the band is firing on all cylinders. Taking the experiences of a 3-year brotherhood, the Polyrhythmics are just hitting their stride, writing and arranging some of the best material yet and setting their sites on the world stage.
Members of the Polyrhythmics have performed with: Allen Stone, Blackalicious, String Cheese Incident, Karl Densen’s Tiny Universe, The Motet, Sam Bush, Jerry Joseph and the Jackmormans, Railroad Earth, Monophonics, Orgone, Choklate, Pickwick, Fishbone and more..
Polyrhythmics are :
Ben Bloom: Guitars
Grant Schroff: Drums
Nathan Spicer: Keys
Lalo Bello: Percussion
Jason Gray: Bass
Scott Morning: Trumpet
Elijah Clark : Trombone
Art Brown: Sax and Flute
"..wonderful funk grooves that give a glimpse into what would have happened if the mothership had crash-landed in Nigeria in 1977. "
AP KRAZA - Willamette Week
"Polyrhythmics. "The Imposter", is a rhythmic afro-funk number packed with so much groove that it is set to kick-off an "occupy the dancefloor" movement.." - Paris DJ's
DJ Souls - Paris DJs
"Okay, okay. Lately, they have been a slew of funk bands popping up on both coasts. Now, with the such a flood of bands coming up, it’s hard to distinguish one from the other. That’s the one flaw with bands like that: they all tried to be the next James Brown, without attempting to bring their own personality in to the mix. Enter Polyrhythmics, a band that’s trying to do their own thing while respecting the spirits of Brown and Fela Kuti. Tracks like “Moonroof”, “Stinky Finger” and the title track have the required funkiness that will guarantee to get asses shaking." - Fredric Hall : Collegenews.com
Fredric Hall - College News
"
[AFROBEAT FUNKADELIC] If you close your eyes real tight while listening to Polyrhythmics' first full-length, this June's Labrador, you can transport yourself to a world with more color, more spice and more soul––basically just an all-around better world—than the one you\\\'re living in. The eight-piece instrumental outfit from Seattle fuses Afrobeat, funk and soul in a big way. Horns and percussion howl throughout the album, creating a very funky, insanely danceable series of songs. The memorable percussion hook in the title track and the controlled chaos of the guitar-heavy \\\"The Revenge of the Sneaky Spider\\\" would make Fela Kuti proud."
Maggie Summers - Willamette Week
" “The Imposter”, point blank, is a great (A) side. Drawing from Afro Beat like Fela, (the horns, the percussion, organ and guitar), but injecting their own style to the side with a tinge of blaxploitation car chase guitar and a smoth bass line, this side is also the definition of funky. While the new Afro Beat movement was lead by bands like Antibalas and the Budos, in 2011, the new kid on the block is Polyrhythmics. There is always room for a band like this who pay tribute to the artist as well as the sound. With an “all live” in one room recording process, they not only keep it real but keep it fresh as well. Papa has got a brand new Afro Beat bag, and it’s name is Polyrhythmics. My bet is they will be opening their bag as they execute their “occupy dance floors movement” in a venue near you. "
DJ Prestige - Flea Market Funk
"Take a polished, modern brand of funk, flavor it with a little Afrobeat swagger and Latin rhythm, and inject a spirited, powerhouse horn section and you’ve got Polyrhythmics."
Ben Salmon - Bend Bulletin
"Labrador, their latest album independently released June 1st, 2011, is a downright funky collection of songs that embrace the phenomenon of the polyrhythm whole-heartedly. Similar to other instrumental afrofunk bands like The Budos Band, Ikebe Shakedown or The Superpowers, their fierce, yet smooth horn section assumes the identity of their sound although their rhythm section lays down a seriously funky back drop over which the horns do their thing.
This album is about as funky as anything you're likely to hear. "
Marc Gabriel Amigone - The Afrobeat Blog
“Heavy and hypnotic rhythms, raw percussion, global jazz funk inspired horns, organ grooves and tasty guitars from Seattle's Polyrhythmics – a young group that to date has just an EP and this self-titled full length to their name – yet they sound like they could have decades of experience in far-reaching global funk! There's a rhythmic dexterity to their sound that's as solid as just about any contemporary combo of the kind we can think of. They didn't pick the band name out of a hat, that's for sure – but, we wouldn't short change the horn section or any other facet of the 8-piece group. There's a clear love of classic Afro Funk, but they don't set out to replicate that vibe. They use it as a spring board and work for and reach a timelessly effective groove .”
Dusty Groove
“...Chill, world funk music that just dares people to not dance to it!”
Lindsey Scully - SSGmusic.com
