In one of the most unique bills of the young 2014 season, heavyweight EDM producer and funk supergroup sold out the historic amphitheater on Saturday night. By combining a staple in the electronic scene with a top tier veteran jamband, the night was a welcomed funkfest of old and new — live and digital — with a slew of crowd-pleasing sit-ins.
See photos below of Lettuce performing at the Fillmore Auditorium in December of 2013.
The evening opened with a block of acts on Lowtemp, Gramatik’s recently launched label after parting ways with Pretty Lights Music (PLM) in 2013. Exmag, BRANX and Gibbz all got time to shine.
With two-thirds of Soulive (guitarist Erik Krasno and keyboardist Neal Evans), one of the best drummers on the market in Adam Deitch and a three-piece horn section to rival any, Lettuce truly is the cream of the funk crop. Saturday was no exception. The band worked the crowd into a frenzy with high-energy, intricately-syncopated originals like “Do It Like You Do” and “Bowler.” Additional highlights included vocalist Alecia Chakour joining the band for a handful of soulful tracks and a sit-in from hometown favorite Dominic Lalli (Big Gigantic) belting sax over “Madison Square.”
After an extended set break, the headlining Gramatik finally made his appearance and revealed a massive dormant lighting rig that filled the night sky with color. Multi-instrumentalist Russ Liquid accompanied him onstage the entire set, adding organic flute, sax, keys and trumpet solos to an otherwise highly-digitized sound.
While throwing in some older material and covers like Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition,” Gramatik’s set focused extensively on his newest release, “The Age of Reason.” The album is a gem of modern production with a core of minimalist beats and tasteful instrumentation that gives way to intense periods of haunting dubstep and bass.
Gramatik’s stage was a revolving door of musicians. Krasno returned for the Hendrixesque “Torture,” saxophonist/producer Griz played a brief Grizmatik set (the two have teamed up multiple times under the moniker), Gibbz lent his falsetto for “Get A Grip,” and Dominic Lalli returned for yet another scream-inducing appearance. The night was a testament to the collaborative nature of the Colorado music scene — a land where funkheads and ravers unite for the love of a good time.
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Nate Etter is a Boulder-based musician and a regular contributor to Reverb. You can reach him at Nate@EcoVessel.com.
