On the 14th day of the Olympics I was able to enjoy and capture some photographs of two American bands including Galactic and Animal Liberation Orchestra (ALO).
Galactic live on stage Whistler 2010
Galactic was the first group to hit the stage today and they performed a great Jazzy, funk show with a rich assortment of instruments from hip hop, electronic and blues mixed into the bunch.
Galactic live on Stage in Whistler 2010
The drummer Stanton Moore uses phrase samplers to create a rhythm which he can sample and play over producing some unique layered drum sounds while Ben Ellman the saxophonist and harmonica player distorts his instruments in a way that they sound similar to an electric guitar. A very extraordinary technique which I really found fascinating.
Galactic live on stage in Whistler 2010
The sextet from New Oreleans formed in 1994 with guitarist Jeff Raines, bassist Robert Mercurio, drummer Stanton Moore, saxophonist Ben Ellman and Hammond organist Rich Vogel, later adding Theryl DeClouet on vocals.
Galactic live on stage in Whistler 2010
Heres a nice little snippet about their newly released album.
“New Orleans is a city defined by its unique and colorful history. It’s for that reason that most tend to view the place as something of a musical museum while ignoring the town’s vibrant and innovative new music. In New Orleans, the hip-hop at the heart of today’s culture emerged from an energetic, highly eroticized and occasionally gender-bending music called “bounce”. And the truth is, all the town’s seemingly disparate styles – jazz, brass bands and funk as well as the newer “bounce” influenced hip hop, are all intrinsically linked. There is a particular inclusiveness about the place which connects both its people and their music. And now, for the first time ever, all these sounds have been combined on one undeniably original record. With YA-KA-MAY, long time NOLA residents, GALACTIC have made an album that reflects the city as they see it – blending all the town’s distinctive sounds in a way no band has before.”
Whistler Live - Olympic Spirit
ALO was the next band to hit the stage here in Whistler after Galactic finished their set. ALO stands for Animal Liberation Orchestra evolved into a nine piece ensemble drawing a lot of attention in the Santa Barbara area with their energetic stage shows; which is no surprise from the performance they put on here in Whistler.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
Zach Gill the keyboardist for ALO went to college with a popular singer-songwriter Jack Johnson. Jack has appeared frequently in ALO shows without notice and really helped promote the band to a wider audience. Later Jack was able to sign the band to his label Brushfire Records.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
In 2005-2006 the ensemble toured all across Europe, including the United Kingdom, France and Spain with two dates in Brazil supporting Jack Johnson. They later opened for Dave Matthews Band in New York and North Carolina.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
In October 2006 they sold out their first headlining concert in San Francisco dubbed “The Abnormal Formal”. May 2007 ALO released their first album on Brushfire Records titled “Roses & Clover“. For this album the band took a much more mainstream approach to the writing and preparation for its release.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
The band recorded their album in a barn nestled in the foothills of Santa Barbara, they took 2 weeks to work on roughly 40 songs that where in various stages of completion. Eventually they chose and perfected 10 songs for their final cut and performed all 10 at their CD release in May 2007.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
Later in 2007 the band appeared in several music festivals and produced three music videos with their friend Matt Powers to help promote the new album. They toured threw Europe in September and threw Brazil in November at the Mostra Festival AlmaSurf.
Animal Liberation Orchestra live in Whistler
ALO was a very fun band to watch and listen too. You could tell they where having a blast play on stage here in Whistler which is great to see. So you if get a chance to see them in your home town or theirs, I’d recommend you check them out for a good night (or day) of music.
Check out the previous day at the Olympics in Whistler, Gorky Park live in Whistler
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I’ve heard some of Galactic’s stuff and their music is amazing. I visited New Orleans years ago and it’s a really rich mix of different types of music and styles and I agree that Galactic’s music totally represents this.
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