Mamaguroove

Mamaguroove is a full frontal assault of funky, delicious, infectious, joyful noise, that brings people to their feet. Not only are they musically talented and tight, but they exude a warmth and spiritual vigor that one rearely encounters these days....Their theatrical performance and surreal stage presence, have scorched an ecstatic, indelible memory into my mind...
If you aren't moved by MAMAGUROOVE, you may as well dig a hole, lie in it, and die... - North Country Review

I am writing this notice in support of Mamaguroove. This group performed at our festival in the 2001 summer season. They came to us very highly recommended by both our own people who had seen them at the northern festivals in British Columbia, and by people associated with those festivals. Mamaguroove had a reputation for a high-energy, off the wall, and original performance that spanned a number of musicial styles.
We were not disapointed. Mamaguroove performed as our headliners on one evening and lead-in to the headliners the next night. On both nights, they had the crowd up and dancing and fully involved. Their combination of frank politics, great beat, and energetic stage show had especially the younger part of our audience out of their seats for hours.
I would recommend Mamaguroove for any festival looking for a high energy band with an alternative, danceable groove and a great work-ethic.
I have been approached by many of the teens in our communities and have been told that Mamaguroove was their favorite band of the festival.

Sincerly
Clemens Rettich
Artistic Director, Edge of the world Music Festival
- Artistic Director

Put on your dancing shoes and hold onto your hat, this octet from Robinson Valley, B C, will enthrall you with their lively "Moutain Electric Funk" World Beat, and energetic stage antics. Mamaguroove's tribal rhythms and high-energy stage combine with strikingly original material and unusual arrangements to form an electric, irresistible muscial gumbo. The "grand humanity" of their presence has won them legions of fans on the B C festival circuit, and their CD has been getting airplay across the country on CBC Radio. When it gets to the song where crazed band members screams out their mantra"IT'S A BEAUTIFUL SUNNY DAY" you will have no choice but to be assimalated into the Mamaguroove cult!! Go happily... resistance is futile.

Michelle Johnson

Jasper Heritage Folk Festival - By Michelle Johnson Jasper News

BC's Mamagurooveare coming to town for a dual celebration as they release their third album at the Earth Day Festival in Hawrelak Park - they expect to be on stage sometime around 4 pm----followed by an evening show at the Earth Day Festival After Party at New City. The new album, "Resistance is Fertile", starts off with a swirl of worldly sounds before building into a thetrical swarm of melodies and grooves- think the energy of Hair or Jesus Christ Superstar crossed with the jam-band tendencies of the Grateful Dead. These back-to-the-earth musicians stand behind their beliefs too, putting extra money into having the album cases printed on cardboard stock rather than using traditional jewel cases-Eden Munro/eden@vueweekly.com - VUE WEEKLY

Mamaguroove delivers a stage show that is in a league of its own. Their roots infused , infectious grooves had the audience dancing, smiling and demanding 5 encores!!”

“Mamaguroove will not disappoint a festival crowd, and we are hoping to bring them back next year!”
- none

Ok, I am still uncertain about this group due to the weirdness factor. I’m a big fan of weird, so when I stumbled upon this late show and saw guys wearing black rubber bondage suits with dreadlocks sticking out of their hoods and all members in blackface but the female lead singer whose face was painted gold and was wearing what appeared to be a sort of wonderwoman/spaceballs constume, I was excited to say the least (Andrew Strain has some great shots he took on his Flickr page). The set started off somewhere in the realm of String Cheese (who despite their bluegrass roots and talents for experimentation, I despise), kind of a crunchy mountain folk funk. But soon it became obvious that their energies were darker and more syncopated, drawing afro-beat rhythms and growling baritone sax ala Fela Kuti into the mix. Their website calls the genre, “happy hardcore” and that’s about right on. At times I tought they sounded like Primus or one of Claypool’s side projects, the bass player really had the tone of Les and some of his stage mannerisms too. But the overall feel due to the costumes and the baritone sax left me thinking Skerik’s Syncopated Taint Septet. On Sunday I met the bass player in the playground while watching our kids play. He was very down to earth and surprised me by sharing that they band really only plays ~10 shows a year, mostly summer festivals in BC. Their tight musicianship led me to believe they were a touring machine. Again I have the feeling that these guys are best represented live, but I haven’t heard their album to say for sure. - Jonas Lamb

"Mamaguroove was the highlight of Saturday night !!

Mamaguroove had young and old on their feet begging for more!

Workshops, small theatre sets, Main Stage sets, accoustic, and plugged in......Mamaguroove wowwed us all !

Mamaguroove is a show to excite and surprise all ages and interests!"

-Rick Newberry, Performing Arts Director, Atlin Arts and Music Festival - Rick Newberry, Performing Arts Director, Atlin Arts and Music Festival

July 7, 2006 WWW.WHATSUPYUKON.COM

Mamaguroove Brings Music of the World

BY EMILY FARRELL

Mamaguroove is all about dancing.

This self-described “mountain eclectic funk/reggae/rock/Latin/world” band will perform at the Longest Days Street Fair next week, promising to bring its great rhythms and funky beats to get audiences to their feet.

Mamaguroove’s unique name comes from a unique history. The band is an amalgamation of two other groups, both based out of the same 200 acres of land that is Dunster, BC.

Mamadrum consisted of two women and a male bass player, while the Looped Gurus was an all-male group.

Mamadrum was a bare bones socio-political band with a message and the latter played soul and funk tunes to move the feet on the dance floor. The two groups shared a rehearsal space and when Shara Gustafson, from Mamadrum, and Seth Macdonald, from the Looped Gurus, became romantically involved, an inevitable union occurred.

The name comes from the Mama’s and the Gurus, who together have formed a new groove that moves the mind and body. Gustafson is the lead vocalist and plays percussion, leading the group with power and passion in her music. Macdonald minds the guitar and vocals with the soul of a gypsy and skills that demand attention.

A classically trained pianist and one of those annoying people who can play almost every instrument, Max Jones backs the group on drums and vocals.

Having slapped the bass for the past 19 years, Chris Chapman brings knowledge in that arena as well as natural talent as a vocalist to the group, having originally started out his music career in heavy metal.

Alaina Chapman usually joins the group on percussion and vocals, but is currently on hiatus while attending school in Vancouver.

Mamaguroove mainly tours Northern BC and Alberta and their venture to the Longest Days Street Fair will be their first trip to Whitehorse. Having played 28 shows in six weeks one previous summer, Mamaguroove will surely enjoy being on “Yukon time” after their gig on July 7 at the Atlin Music Festival.

Whitehorse audiences can expect a high-energy show, complete with costumes, antics, and a good groove for the body and soul.Mamaguroove plays the Longest Days Street Fair on July 12 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Fire hall Plaza.
- What's Up Yukon

14 the fitzhugh, JASPER, AB THURSDAY, AUGUST 31, 2006
__Arts & Culture_____

Drag me over the rainbow – to Robson Valley

Bob Covey, EDITOR

The hills were alive with the sound of music this weekend, but instead of a fresh-faced nun named Maria, those singing their lungs out were a troupe of neo-lust warriors known as "Mamaguroove”..

With bongo beats reverberating off the nearby Fraser River and a tent city splayed out in a nearby hay field, the Dunster acreage that Mamaguroove calls home played host to the Robson Valley Music Festival August 25-27. The usually tranquil setting – think wildflowers, lush forest floor and narrow roads winding in between – was a melting pot of rock, funk, blues, hip-hop and rock-a-billy for three days, bringing people of all ages and backgrounds to convene on the common blanket of good music.

While the headline acts delivered what they promised – on Saturday the Plaid Tongued Devils impaled the crowd with their blend of fiddle-driven ska-gypsy-rock; on Friday Jasper’s Sonance blew the tent flaps open with their sonic guitars and rapid-fire lyrics – the real treat was watching the hosts come into their own.

Working as organizers and planners during the day, from dusk till dawn it was Mamaguroove time. When you realized that the same guy you conversed with during a swim in the river turned out to be the sax player, it hit home that this was a home-grown festival indeed, made for those who love music, by those who love music.

Some partygoers might have complained about the consistency of the acts – one of Friday’s opener’s, Wells BC’s unwavering Yael Wand, transfixed the still-sparse crowd with her coal miner-inspired ballads while later that same evening a presence-less Vancouver act ate up time trying to get in tune – truly there was something for everybody. From Keith Burchnall’s wicked and weird synthesized obscurities to the funk-laced throw-down by the Fabulous Bee Feeders that had everyone talking the next day, this weekend gets pegged simply as a “music festival” because it incorporates a range of artists as varied as the Fraser is long.

More than 30 acts got up on stage to wail and whisper, strum and drum, pluck and cluck and generally throw caution to the warm Robson Valley wind. The crowd crowed appreciatively with each successive band as they soaked up the sun by day: by night, when the temperature dipped, star-gazing was forwent for dancing as the grass-roots (pun intended) gathering was soused out of its smoky slumber. Not coincidentally, this was around the same time the mist from the meandering river started to settle on your Indian blanket and produce a shiver that made you glad you took that last hit of scotch.

Almost every band commented on the good natured ambience of the audience – something that could be felt as you strolled to and from the music grounds, passing and nodding to a cornucopia of tie-dyed shirts and skirts worn by children aged eight to 80. And when things did get rowdy, it was because the band on stage was taking the energy that had started welling up as the first camper van clunked into Dunster and were throwing it into their instruments.

Robson Valley may not have the big-name acts like some of the more well-known music festivals, but from the mood of the crowd, organizers and performers, they wouldn’t want it any other way.

When "Mamaguroove” decides to come out of the woodwork, good things follow. See you next year.
- the Fitzhugh, Jasper AB

October 2nd, 2006

To Whom It May Concern:

It is my great pleasure to write a letter of recommendation for the wonderfully funky, super high-energy band from Dunster, BC: "Mamaguroove". Truly a treasure in the north, Mamaguroove provides a unique and thrilling musical experience that has gained them a very loyal fan base across the province.

Having seen Mamaguroove play live a number of times and because of the many people who, over the years, have continually mentioned their name as THE band to have perform live, we were very excited that they were able to be a part of the 2006 Artswells Festival in Wells this summer.

Mamaguroove was a feature performer on the Saturday night of the festival and served up an unforgettable performance, with their patented blend of musical styles, that ignited the crowd and kept them grooving late into the wee hours.

I would not hesitate to ask them back to the festival and would surely recommend them to other festivals and events. In addition to being a fabulous band, they are also really lovely people to work with.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Yours truly,

Julie Fowler
Artistic Director, Island Mountain ArtsWells Festival of All Things Art
media@imarts.com
1-800-442-2787 - ISLAND MOUNTAIN ARTS