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I was fortunate enough to see a great bands on Saturday. A cool little three piece called Organic Funk that got things cooking at The Hideaway on Queen West.
This 3 piece aptly named band is a highly entertaining and talented group of musicians that do everything to underline the simple elegance that can happen within a 3 piece musical group. Are they organic? I’m not sure there’s a better way to describe Michael Costantini’s playing. Michael is one of the smoothest and most talented guitar players I’ve heard in Toronto and he weaves effortlessly through a repertoire that could just as easily have been played by a lineup of Carlos Santana, Peter Tosh, Jimi Hendrix, and Duane Allman. As for the funk - some of the funkiest grooves going. I really enjoyed this bands live performance, and so did the rest of the crowd at the Hideaway.
Bass, played by Michael Sullivan, while not overly complex, or showy did it’s job well, by supporting the percussion with at times, solid standard and other times unexpected and creative bass lines that engage the listener into the experience and overall feel of the song.
I didn’t have the opportunity to speak with the drummer, Jason Costantini, but I’m guessing that he has formal jazz percussion training - spot on timing and creative fills, with a real sensitivity for the vocals and the lead guitar.
Overall, I liked the John Mayer like sweet smooth voice of Constantini matched with delicate and beautiful guitar work that inserted just the right amount of crunch and guts to pull off a soulful and intense performance.
Great live band
On a side note - Their CD (when it began) is worth the money.
KJ
link:
http://ampbuzz.wordpress.com/2008/09/14/organic-funk-the-hideout-sat-aug-16th/
- Amplifier Buzz
Those guys are good, the singer has a beautiful voice - myspace
You guys are really tight. - myspace
Discography
Debut Album:
When It Began - 2008
12 tracks of original music by Organic Funk
Recorded By Organic Funk
Mixed By Liam Webster
Mastered By Phil Demetro @
The Lacquer Channel
Sophomore Album:
Speak Now - 2010
10 tracks all original material by Organic Funk
Recorded at Halla Music and at a home studio.
Mixed by Liam Webster
Mastered at the Lacquer Channel
Photos
Bio
Toronto based band Organic Funk launched their latest CD entitled “Speak Now” on February 10, 2011 at the Legendary Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, Canada to an enthusiastic crowd. The first single from the album entitled “For Today” was pre-released to radio and the immediate reaction was excellent garnering airplay coast to coast in Canada. The band has been compared to “a pre-popular Maroon 5”. The comments from radio have been very encouraging… “There is something very pure and raw about them…” “They may be on to something…” “Definitely a winner…” “Absolutely love it``. Their new album, entitled “Speak Now” features 10 great tracks and is available on Trilogy Records which is distributed world-wide on the web by The Orchard.
The funk/rock quartet is made up of Michael Costantini, Lead Vocals & Guitars, Shawn Rompre on Drums, Jim O’Brian on Bass, Sax and Vocals and Alan Zemaitis on Keyboards and Vocals. The band composes, produces and performs music that has been described as “contemporary rock with a funky groove and a hint of retro”. Although the group aspires to perform their own original material, they win approval for their original songs by interspersing well known musical titles that blend with their originals, elevating their songs alongside the classic hits. They have built a strong following in their home territory and have an excellent web presence through their profile on My Space: http://www.myspace.com/organicfunk .
Their summer tour schedule saw them playing on average 3 shows a week in small to medium size clubs with a sprinkling of Festival appearances in key Ontario markets. The band will officially release their second single, the title track of their CD “Speak Now”, together with the video on September 15th, 2011. To support the release the band will be performing tour dates in Ontario and Quebec. And if that’s not enough, the band will follow this up embarking on their first European Tour which will kick off in Paris, France at the highly acclaimed Euro Disney Theme Park with several shows scheduled at the prestigious Billy Bob’s concert venue located at Disney Village. In France, the band currently enjoys airplay on NRJ POP, NRJ Radio Group’s digital radio platform.
Perhaps Canadian reviewer Ryan Stephenson Price sums it up best in a recent review of an Organic Funk concert in Toronto – here is an excerpt:
“…If you’ll take anything away from this review though – see them live if ever given the opportunity: they have a way of playing off each other that really emotes to the crowd. You can tell just how much fun they’re having, and they want you to join in too. They’ll leave you grooving in your shoes all night long, you’ll be singing along with their covers, and you just might get an invite to a party from some random attractive Europeans that were enticed to enter the venue from off the street because they heard some funky tunes as they happened to be walking by. What, that doesn’t happen to everybody? Well, clearly you were at the wrong concert that night…” RYAN STEPHENSON PRICE, THE INDIE MACHINE May 13, 2011
For more information contact:
IN CANADA
Backstage Productions International, 3015 Kennedy Road #1, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada M1V 1E7
Tel: 416-291-4913 ~ Fax: 416-297-7784 ~ E-Mail: info@backstageproductions.com
For Interviews contact: Steve Thomson, steve@backstageproductions.com
For Radio Tracking contact: Brandye Chase, brandye@backstageproductions.com
IN FRANCE
Jean Davoust Editeur, 25 Boulevard Arago, 75013 Paris
T: 33 (0)1 55 43 08 45
Jean Davoust, jean-davoust-editeur@wanadoo.fr
Backstage
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