Bugg Juice

Sometimes the most important ingredient in music is simply fun. Bugg Juice overflows with that sweet, sugary goodness that feels like a warm gentle breeze wrapping around you. Bugg Juice understands the importance of not just jamming, but good song composition as well. Fans don’t just find themselves dancing along with those irresistible guitar hooks, but also singing with those infectiously catchy lyrics. This comes, in part, from the band’s unique music composing style. All their songs are always open to reworking and reinvention. As the band puts it, “The tunes are constantly evolving and changing. The songs at any given moment in time are just a snapshot of a work in progress.”

This open-ended style of music writing has helped Bugg Juice win the highly sought after title of Jambands.com’s “New Groove of the Month” for Oct/Nov. The band continues to increase its exposure in the jam world, and with the extremely positive audience reaction, Bugg Juice's show schedule is growing daily. They’re heading into the studio in the beginning of November to record their five-song EP. If songs like “Grow” and “In The Summatime” are any indication of what you’re in store for, their should be a big smile on your face. Go ahead we dare you to try to listen to “In The Summatime” without singing those lyrics! Trust us, you won’t be able to. Luckily for Bugg Juice they find themselves in a great time and place, as Brooklyn, Long Island, and New York are experiencing a growth in the jamband scene. New York is known for incredible everything, and musical talent is no exception. The area has great bands from all over the world that you can dance to any night of the week, and you can count Bugg Juice as one of those bands. Take our word for it, even if you have just one taste you will be asking for a second glass of Bugg Juice.
-ITJ - http://www.inthejam.com

Bugg Juice

2007-10-22

This month, once again, our readers selected our New Groove of the Month via a Jambands 250 poll. Bugg Juice Bugg Juice took the honors. The New York City-based band consists of Marc Pincus (Guitar & Vocals), Dave Cohen (Keyboards & Vocals), Nick Sullivan (Fretted/Fretless Bass) and Chaim Tolwin (Drums & Backing Vocals). The four musicians are familiar figures in the tri-state area as they are alumni of numerous other groups, including: Raisinhill, Head Monkey, Throwback, the Asiko Afrobeat Orchastra, Ma Skillet and The Funky Fritters, Mama Roux and The Greasy Skillets, The One Tree Reggae Band, Djibouti and The Kind.

Here Bugg Juice collectively answered our questions regarding their development, future plans and just how they rose to victory in 250...

Bugg Juice is certainly still developing its fan base, so were you surprised that the band won our New Groove poll?

Bugg Juice- Yes. We were really surprised and excited. You know, we’ve all spent a lot of time playing in other bands, all have our own little networks, and MySpace has been great to connect with people. It felt really good to be recognized and supported. Thank you to everyone who voted for us!

You must have some rather fervid supporters, any thoughts on your connection to your fans?

Bugg Juice- We love them. A lot. We’ve got a ton of great fans, friends, and family who’ve followed us through our previous projects and supported us in every way possible. It seems like Bugg Juice brought them all together to form something of a community. To tell you the truth, it made us feel great. We were blown away.

It seem as if the four of you have appeared in many other bands, can you talk about how the group came together?

Bugg Juice- Marc (guitar and vocals) has always written songs, in previous bands, etcetera. About two years ago he and Chaim (drums) got together and started jamming informally, for fun, using Marc’s songs as a springboard for lengthy improvisation, stuff like blending world rhythms and rock. And the chemistry developed from there. We spent a long time searching for the right bassist, someone who was rhythmic as hell, yet melodic. When we finally found Nick, he was that steady, solid backbone that was needed, and yet very creative. The three of us played as a trio for a while. Dave (keyboards and vocals) recently moved to Brooklyn, and was playing in a different band with Chaim. Dave sat in at a couple of Bugg Juice rehearsals, and the four of us really clicked. He was exactly what the band needed. We all come from different musical backgrounds and bring different styles to the table, so the common ground we’ve found between the four of us has been something special.

How often do the four of you rehearse? What do you focus on when you get together for rehearsal?

Bugg Juice- We rehearse at least three times a week in one form or another. Even though we’re kind of spread out throughout the NYC area, we like to play as often as possible. Even if someone can’t make it, the rest of us will still get together and jam. At some rehearsals we focus on vocals and harmonies, others we’ll do rhythmic exercises, and other we’ll just jam for hours and run tunes. There are no set rules.

Who writes the band's music? How it is typically presented to the group and how does it then come together?

Bugg Juice- Again, it started with Marc and Chaim. This goes back to two years ago when the two of them got together and started working on songs. Marc would bring his originals to the table, mostly chords, arrangements, vocal melodies, and lyrics, and then Chaim would add his flavor, lay down a beat, suggest different rhythms. With the additions of Nick and Dave, the songs were able to come to life with a fuller rhythm section and more layers.

We all throw our suggestions in. Autonomy is important to us, so when a tune first comes to the table, we try not to dictate each other’s parts. We let each other find our own individual sound within whatever is written. Since Dave’s joined, he’s brought his catalogue of originals to the table, as well, and we’re just getting started with those. There’s a lot of material and a lot of work to do. We’re just getting the ball rolling.

The songs are really an ongoing evolution. We don’t like to be tied down with static tunes. Change is an important aspect to all of us. We want to stay fluid.

How does Bugg Juice approach its original songs in the live setting?

Bugg Juice- This is a perfect example of what we mean by fluidity. During live shows, we really open the songs up, letting them take shape in the moment. One night we’ll play our songs one way and the next night a different way. Our songs are like a basic framework: we know where we start and know where we want to end, but we never get there the same way twice. Actually, sometimes we don’t even know where we want to end – sometimes we’ll flow into a new song without even intending to do so. Like with - Jambands.com

Three of a Kind at Ace of Clubs

On Friday night, Jambands.com hosted a night of New Grooves at New York’s Ace of Clubs. The gig featured former New Groove of the Month bands Licorice, BuzzUniverse and Bugg Juice and, fittingly, saw a good amount of cross-pollination among the three acts. During BuzzUniverse’s set, a number of players trickled onstage, including area-saxophonist Tony Salva, who enhanced the group for the second half of their set, and Bugg Juice guitarist Marc Pincus, who played on the originals "Rock" and "In the Sun." The latter number also featured a surprise appearance by New Jersey folk/hip-hop artist Ross Sandler, who added original rhymes and dance moves to the tune. Licorice closed out the evening’s festivities with an extended set that featured covers of the Beatles (“Hey Bulldog”), Jim Hendrix (“Come On”) and Madonna (“La Isla Bonita”). The BuzzUniverse Horn section of Brian Ciufo and Stefanie Seskin also appeared on the Licorice originals “What’s Your Status in London?” and “Freeze.” - Jambands.com

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
A Night Of New Grooves: Licorice, BuzzUniverse & Bugg Juice Deal Out At The Ace Of Clubs
By: David Schultz

David Fricke once described the obligations responsible listeners owe to music as the following: “Respect the elders; embrace the new; encourage the impractical and improbable without bias.” For almost a decade, jambands.com has embraced the new and encouraged those doing something unique with their New Groove of the Month; an award it bestows on up-and-coming bands worthy of increased exposure. This past Friday night, Licorice, BuzzUniverse and Bugg Juice converged on New York City’s Ace of Clubs for a triple bill full featuring three past recipients of the New Groove honor. The varying styles of the three different bands demonstrated the variety and breadth of music that falls into the jamband umbrella. Bugg Juice’s set focused on funk and Grateful Dead style... jams, BuzzUniverse offered an eclectic mix of Latin and world rhythm tinged tunes and Licorice closed the night with a mighty set that showcased the wonderful musicianship that is the band’s signature.

Bugg Juice opened the night with an extended opening set centered round guitarist Marc Pincus, who once spent time in Head Monkey with U-Melt’s Zac Lasher and George Miller. A band of the people, Bugg Juice earned their New Groove status by winning it during one of the months opened to fan voting. A lot of their songs have a bright bouncy feel to them and echo timeless grooves.... Dave Cohen is able to get the type of bluesy funk out of his keyboards that marked some of their more danceable songs. They also worked the double percussion, with Katie Pearlman joining Chaim Tolwin on the drums.

The spirit of cooperation endemic in the jamband scene manifested itself at the close of (Buzz Universe's) set with Marc Pincus from Bugg Juice and folk-rapper Ross Sandler joining in on a superextended version of “In The Sun,” a marvelous song that goes in many directions, working off Greg McLoughlin’s wickedly funky bass line.

Licorice, BuzzUniverse and Bugg Juice have more in common besides joining bands like Tea Leaf Green, The Slip, Robert Randolph & The Family Band and Grace Potter & The Nocturnals in the pantheon of New Grooves of the Month. For all the differences between the three bands, one thing remained constant, with these New Grooves, things move quick and they never get old.
- Earvolution.com

The Groovelink.com
March 2008 issue
http://thegroovelink.com
http://thegroovelink.com/newissue.pdf



Bugg Juice is labeled as a jam band, and there is no disillusion. While their sound, can be structured and well thought out, the music can be equally exploratory in nature as they deviate from that structure with great ease, as if there were no constraints at all. With complementing song lyrics that exude a kind of happiness, sort of a good time feeling that leaves the listener in high spirits.

It's the music though, powerful and energetic surging with excitement, the sweet poetic guitar riffs, that combine with a thumping bass, and mind blowing keyboards, all to make up inconceivable melodies, in which it could be argued, is where the rest of their musical style is derived from.

Their influence drawn from all that is the american jamband scene, this group of musicians based out of Brookyln NY have been honing their musical skills for years. A band of tested musicians that have performed in such groups as ..


Raisinhill - (2003 Jam-Off finalist),
Head Monkey - (which went on to join forces with A-440 and become U-Melt)
Throwback – (Relix Magazine's number one up & coming act - June 2005 issue)


The fall of 07 was eventful for the band, named by jambands.com "New Groove of the Month " that brought them some added exposure. And kept them busy till late fall. Look for Bugg Juice in 08, hopefully with a new album!

Check em out: www.buggjuice.net



-The Groovelink

- The Groovelink.com