Concert Review
Live at Higher Ground
Burlington, VT • April 11, 2015
By Mitchell Parrish
Wow. Turkuaz. Wow. What a show. What a performance.
I’ve written about these guys before. Over the past years, Turkuaz has developed a little bit of a storied history in Burlington, starting off in Nectar’s, drawing in larger and larger crowds each time they came to town, and then moving up to Higher Ground (literally and figuratively). This past December, they played their first show at Higher Ground, headlining the Showcase Lounge and with local favorites Smooth Antics opening up. The show sold out and everyone in attendance came away with the same conclusion: Turkuaz is FOR REAL.
For their return, just four months later, Turkuaz was billed in the Higher Ground Ballroom– a 750 cap room. And what do you think happened? The show SOLD OUT again. It was a quite a special night in Burlington.
The local power soul outfit Kat Wright and the Indomitable Soul Band kicked things off as they always do: high energy, soulful vocals, and ripping guitar by Bob Wagner. The band did a nice job filling the big room, and set the tone for what was to come.
Without hesitation, Turkuaz took the stage and opened with a 5-minute high energy funk jam: horns blaring, guitars weaving, rhythm section pounding. They clearly knew their audience. From then on it was off to the races.
You can read my previous review here if you want to hear more about the sound and style of this unique funk group. But here’s the cliff notes version: they sound like the love child of George Clinton and David Byrne. The tempo and pace at which they play sets them apart from the hundreds of funk bands that I’ve seen over the years. They have an amazing tight rhythm section (and last night we were fortunate enough to see them with their percussionist, who doesn’t always tour with the group.) The band is so tight that they mask just how manic their arrangements are. And right when you think they can’t build it any higher, they bring it down, to almost silence, just to throw it back in your face as if it never happened.
The band capped off its 2 hour set with undoubtedly the best encore I’ve seen a band do in 2015. After everyone got back on stage, the front guitarist Dave Brandwein began to noodle a very familiar riff. I looked over at my friend Erik and said plainly, “They’re not about to cover ‘With a Little Help From My Friends. Are they?’” And just as I asked, the band jumps right into it. I have never heard a band cover Joe Cocker’s version of the Beatles classic because to do so, you have to have some serious balls. And too many bands don’t have balls. Turkuaz, however, does. Without any reservations, Turkuaz busted out a phenomenal cover and the crowd was beyond thrilled. It was spot on. The vocals, back up vocals, the transition into the bridge, the horns. It was magic.
I could go on and on but I risk losing your attention with all my flattery. Simply put, this band is fantastic. Go see them NOW.