Spafford | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Prescott, Arizona, USA |
Genres | jam rock |
Years active | 2009–present |
Labels | self-released |
Members |
|
Past members |
|
Website | http://www.spafford.net/ |
Spafford is a U.S.-based jam band that blends multiple genres of music including rock, funk, jazz, reggae, ska, and electro-pop. Its members include Brian Moss (guitar/vocals), Jordan Fairless (bass/vocals), Nick Tkachyk (drums/percussion/vocals), and Cory Schechtman (keys/sax). The group self-releases its recordings, including studio albums, improvisational sessions, and soundboard releases of their live shows.
Spafford's sound is the product of the backgrounds and influences of the different songwriters and musicians in the band. [1] The band uses an improvisational style to transition within and between the songs in their sets of live music, [2] which sometimes include diverse covers performed in unique and improvisational styles. [3] Spafford tours across the U.S., and each of their shows features a different setlist and approach to the songs in their catalogue of original music. [4] The band often provides live streams and access to recordings of its shows. [5]
Brian Moss and Jordan Fairless are the founding members of Spafford. In 2008 they played open mic nights at Coyote Joe's, a venue in Prescott, Arizona. At the time, Moss played guitar and Fairless played percussion. In 2010, Mike Kreidel (2010-2011) became Spafford's drummer, and Fairless, a multi-instrumentalist, assumed the bass guitar. The first keyboard player was Jonathan Hust (2010-2011). [6] In 2011, Andrew "Red" Johnson (keys/vocals) and Nick Tkachyk joined Spafford. Tkachyk took a break in 2017, and Cameron Laforest became Spafford's drummer, [7] in place of Tkachyk until his return in early 2019. Johnson announced his departure from the band in fall 2022 after vetting Schechtman as his replacement. [8] Through their tours, archives, and live video recordings, Spafford has established a fan base of "Spaffnerds" who travel to see the band and maintain an online community surrounding its shows. [9]
Brian Moss was born on February 22, 1985, in River Vale, New Jersey. He started writing music when he was 12 years old. [10] Brian moved to Arizona in his twenties and played in several bands in Phoenix and in Prescott before he met Jordan Fairless in 2008 and went on to develop Spafford shortly thereafter.
Jordan Christopher Fairless was born on September 1, 1985. Raised in a musical family in Nashville, Tennessee, Jordan is a multi-instrumentalist. He was more a drummer than a bassist when he and Brian first met, and he focused on the bass guitar thereafter. [11] Jordan served as a sound engineer at Prescott's Green Room during Spafford's early years.
Nick Tkachyk was born February 24, 1989, in Tucson, Arizona. Nick has been a drummer since birth and would arrange pots and pans to drum on before receiving his first drum kit. His first musical endeavor was a ska outfit in high school. In addition to playing drums, Nick also creates electronic music. Nick took a hiatus from Spafford from 2017 - 2019, being replaced by Cameron LaForest, before rejoining the group for Jazz Festival in New Orleans, LA. [12]
Chuck "Spafford" Johnson was born on June 23, 1985. He is originally from Denver, Colorado. Chuck was Spafford's original lighting designer, co-lyricist, and namesake. [13] Chuck's lighting design set the stage for Spafford's performances in their early tours. Chuck continues to guide both the band's aesthetic and its musical direction.
Andrew "Red" Johnson was born on December 2, 1980. He hails from Belvidere, Illinois, and moved to Phoenix in 2001. Red was a pianist, vocalist, and keyboard player in the Phoenix music scene before he joined Spafford for his first show at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas in 2011. [14]
On November 21, 2022, Andrew "Red" Johnson announced his intention to leave Spafford, citing the desire to spend more time with family. His last show with Spafford was December 31st of that year. Cory Schechtman was named a permanent replacement. [15]
Spafford has made over 100 recordings of their live shows available on the Live Music Archive (archive.org). [16] Their music is also featured on Sirius XM's JamOn, [17] as well as on nugs.net, [18] Spotify, [19] and Apple Music. [20] The band interviewed with Sirius XM Jam On host Ari Fink in April 2018 to promote For Amusement Only, and the interview aired tracks from the album, as well as a 57-minute live jam that was recorded in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, during the winter 2018 tour.
Spafford has hosted after-party shows for Furthur and Widespread Panic. [21] Spafford has also been the featured act at the Las Vegas venues Hard Rock Hotel and Casino and The Palms. [22] Spafford has opened for Umphrey's McGee and shared the stage with, Particle, the Motet, and EOTO. [23]
IAmAVL.com broadcast and archived the band's shows at the Asheville Music Hall on October 21 and 22, 2017. They also sat for an Echo Session, which was broadcast live. [24]
On April 6, 2018, Spafford played for a Knicks halftime show at Madison Square Garden. [25]
On May 27, 2018, Spafford made their first appearance at Red Rocks Amphitheater, in Morrison, Colorado, with Organ Freeman, opening for the Disco Biscuits at 2018's Bisco Inferno. [26]
In summer 2014, Spafford toured the Southwest. [27] In 2016, Spafford traveled East of Colorado for their "Breakout Tour". [28] On that tour, they sold out Chicago's Tonic Room for a two-night show in less than two hours. [29]
In winter 2017, Spafford toured with Umphrey's McGee for over a dozen shows. [30] [31] They also headlined their own tour simultaneously. [32] Spafford joined Umphrey's McGee again to play five shows for the second leg of their summer 2018 tour. [33]
In winter 2018, Spafford kicked off the For Amusement Only tour with 17 shows across the Northeast, Midwest, and Southeast United States. [34] Spafford also toured from September to November 2017 and returned to their home base in Phoenix, Arizona to play a three-night, sold-out New Year's Eve run at the Crescent Ballroom. [35] The fall tour included more than 30 dates in over 20 states across the U.S. [36]
On the 2018 schedule for Spafford was a continuation of the For Amusement Only tour [9] to promote their third studio album, which follows Abaculus: An Improvisational Experience (2017) [37] and Spafford (2012). They released the first single, "Leave the Light On," from For Amusement Only on April 4, 2018. [38] The band has also released live albums from songs played on tour, including A Taste of Fall in 2017. [39] In 2019, Spafford played a 40-show winter tour, spanning across two months from January until March. The tour set the band to cover ground starting in Minnesota, to New York, Florida, and Colorado, out to Washington, and ending in California. The locations are many venues they had played in the prior year; however, across the states the band announced many debuts in venues much larger than those than in 2018. In Asheville, they played the 1,050 capacity Orange Peel after playing the smaller Asheville Music Hall the prior year. Similarly, graduating from the 625-person Terminal West to the 1,000-person Variety Playhouse in Atlanta, Georgia. Spafford confirmed and began a winter tour in 2020, [40] which was cut short in March by the COVID-19 pandemic. In May 2020, the band played and live-streamed a socially-distant drive in show in Mesa, Arizona, one of the first of its kind in the U.S. at the beginning of the pandemic. [41] In December 2020, Spafford played two live New Year's Eve shows and broadcast them to fans across the country. [42] The band returned to the Marquee Theater in Tempe, Arizona, in spring 2021 for two outdoor shows for live audiences. [43]
Spafford's fall 2021 tour included 22 dates in venues across the U.S. [44] In 2022, they played 47 live shows across the U.S., [45] including Red Johnson's final shows with the band on December 30 and 31 at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, AZ. [46] Spafford's first year on tour with Schechtman on the keys, 2023, featured 80 live shows in Spring and Summer, with nearly 30 additional shows booked for the remainder of the calendar year. [47]
Earlier festivals Spafford appeared at include Gem and Jam (Tucson, AZ), Euphoria (Austin, TX), [48] and the McDowell Mountain Music Festival (Phoenix, AZ). [49]
In mid-2017, Spafford played Head for the Hills (New Braunfels, TX), Mad Tea Party Jam (Artemas, PA), Electric Forest (Rothbury, MI), [50] Some Kind of Jam (Schuylkill Haven, PA), [51] Summer Camp (Chillicothe, IL), [52] Wind Rider (Alto, NM), [53] and the Resonance Music Festival (Thornville, OH). [54] At these festivals, Spafford played alongside artists like Rusted Root, Gov’t Mule, My Morning Jacket, The String Cheese Incident, [50] Moe., Bassnectar, Trey Anastasio Band, Lettuce, Mike Gordon, Primus, the Disco Biscuits, and Lotus.
In summer 2018, Spafford played the following festivals:
At the Sweetwater 420 Fest at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia, Spafford performed alongside a lineup that included the String Cheese Incident, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Joe Russo's Almost Dead, and Greensky Bluegrass. [55] Spafford also returned to the Summer Camp Music Festival in Chillicothe, Illinois [52] alongside moe., Phil Lesh & the Terrapin Family Band, and Cypress Hill. Spafford's first Bonnaroo appearance is billed with artists including Eminem, Muse and the Killers. [56] Additionally, the band made its debut appearance at Firefly with Kendrick Lamar and Arctic Monkeys, [57] The Peach Music Festival (featuring Phil Lesh, Gov't Mule and Joe Russo's Almost Dead), [58] and Lockn' (featuring Umphrey's McGee, Widespread Panic, and Dead & Co.). [59]
In May 2020, Spafford performed for Quarantine Comes Alive, [60] a virtual music festival benefitting the COVID-19 Relief Fund that raised over $170,000 in proceeds.
Spafford returned to the Peach Music Festival in 2021 with artists including Oysterhead and Warren Haynes. [61] They will also headlined the Moon Dance Music Festival in Gleason, WI [62] and played the Bottlerock festival in Napa Valley alongside Guns N' Roses, Stevie Nicks, and the Foo Fighters. [63]
Spafford has engaged several notable live collaborations during live sets with artists including Karl Denson; [64] Aron Magner; [65] Brendan Bayliss; [66] and Jennifer Hartswick, Natalie Cressman, and James Casey of Trey Anastasio Band. [67]
Spafford's recording history includes an eclectic mix of studio (e.g. Spafford [2012]; [68] For Amusement Only [2018]; [69] The Gaff Tapes [2019]); [70] Simple Mysteries [2022]); [71] live (e.g. Live Vol. 1-3 [2015, 2016, 2020]; [72] A Taste of Fall [2017]; [73] Live at the Drive-In [2020]; [74] Live Wax Vol. 1 [2023]; [75] and improvisational works (e.g. Abaculus [2017]; [76] Chapel Jam [2019]; [77] The Big Field Sessions [2021]). [78] The band makes video and audio recordings of many of their live shows available shortly after each event for their large and growing fanbase.
The first Spafford studio album was self-titled, released in 2012, and the band termed it "traditional." [79]
In 2017, Spafford released the hour-long, single track Abaculus: An Improvisational Experience, culled from a continuous jam the band recorded at their rehearsal space called "The Pound." [80]
Among the live recordings that Spafford has made available, the band has released several studio albums, including For Amusement Only, which was released in spring 2018, [81] The Gaff Tapes, which was released in fall 2019, [82] and Simple Mysteries, which was released in Fall 2022. [83]
Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, drummer Jon Fishman, and keyboardist Page McConnell, all of whom perform vocals, with Anastasio being the lead vocalist. The band is known for their musical improvisation and jams during their concert performances and for their devoted fan following.
Moe is an American jam rock band, formed at the University at Buffalo in 1989. The band members are Rob Derhak, Al Schnier, Chuck Garvey, Vinnie Amico (drums), Jim Loughlin (percussion) and Nate Wilson (keyboard).
The String Cheese Incident (SCI) is an American jam band from Crested Butte and Telluride, Colorado, formed in 1993. The band is composed of Michael Kang, Michael Travis, Bill Nershi, Kyle Hollingsworth, and Keith Moseley, and, since 2004, Jason Hann.
The Disco Biscuits are an American jam band from Philadelphia. The band consists of Allen Aucoin (drums), Marc "Brownie" Brownstein, Jon "The Barber" Gutwillig, and Aron Magner. The band incorporates elements from a variety of musical genres with a base of electronic and rock. Their style has been described as trance fusion.
Umphrey's McGee, sometimes stylized as UM, is an American jam band originally from South Bend, Indiana. The band experiments with many musical styles, including rock, metal, funk, jazz, blues, reggae, electronic, bluegrass, country, and folk. They have toured regularly and released several albums. Since year 2002, they were the headlining act and organizers of Summer Camp Music Festival, which was held annually in Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois.
Phoenix is a French indie rock band from Versailles, formed in 1995. Their line-up, which has remained unchanged since their formation, comprises Thomas Mars, Deck d'Arcy, Christian Mazzalai and Laurent Brancowitz. Thomas Hedlund has been the band's session and live drummer since 2005.
Vampire Weekend is an American rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chris Tomson, and bassist Chris Baio. Batmanglij departed the group in early 2016 but has continued to occasionally contribute to subsequent albums as a songwriter, producer, and musician.
The Infamous Stringdusters are a progressive acoustic/bluegrass band. The band first emerged in 2006 with the limited release of a five-song extended play CD The Infamous Stringdusters, followed in 2007 by their first album Fork in the Road. Both of these were on Sugar Hill Records. The band consists of Andy Hall (Dobro), Andy Falco (guitar), Chris Pandolfi (banjo), Jeremy Garrett (fiddle), and Travis Book. The band has become known for a complex, distinctive, and groove-friendly sound along with a bluegrass theme.
The Summer Camp Music Festival is a multi-day music festival created by Jay Goldberg Events & Entertainment and held annually on Memorial Day Weekend at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, Illinois. The event typically attracts around 20,000 visitors, of which between 8,000 and 10,000 arrive before gates open. In 2014, it was listed as one of the top 40 music festivals in Rolling Stone and in 2015 on Rolling Stone's 50 Must-See Music Festivals.
The Grateful Dead were an American rock band known for their lengthy, partially improvised performances, as well as for a loyal fan base who often followed the band for several shows or entire tours. They disbanded in 1995, following the death of de facto bandleader Jerry Garcia. Since then remaining members have reunited for a number of concert tours and one-off performances, often in very different configurations. The following is a list of instances where former Grateful Dead members have reunited.
Moon Taxi is an American indie-alternative rock band based in Nashville, Tennessee. The band was founded in 2006 by Trevor Terndrup, Tommy Putnam (bass), Spencer Thomson, Tyler Ritter (drums), and Wes Bailey (keys) while attending Belmont University.
A jam band is a musical group whose concerts and live albums substantially feature improvisational "jamming." Typically, jam bands will play variations of pre-existing songs, extending them to improvise over chord patterns or rhythmic grooves. Jam bands are known for having a very fluid structure, playing long sets of music which often cross genre boundaries, varying their nightly setlists, and segueing from one song into another without a break.
Lockn' Festival, first known as Interlocken Music Festival, was an annual four-day music festival held at Oak Ridge Farm near Arrington in Nelson County, Virginia. The festival focused primarily on jam bands and other music improvisation acts. Its inaugural event took place September 5–8, 2013, drew nearly 25,000 fans and featured notable groups such as Furthur, Trey Anastasio Band, Gov't Mule, Widespread Panic featuring John Fogerty, The String Cheese Incident featuring Zac Brown, and The Black Crowes.
The Peach Music Festival is a music festival started by the Allman Brothers Band and Live Nation Entertainment that has been held annually since 2012 at the Pavilion at Montage Mountain and Montage Mountain Ski Resort in Scranton, Pennsylvania. One exception was in 2020.
Big Something is an American alternative rock band based in Burlington, North Carolina.
Joe Russo's Almost Dead is an American rock band formed in 2013 that mainly covers the music of the Grateful Dead. Formed by Furthur and Benevento/Russo Duo drummer Joe Russo, the band played their first show on January 26, 2013 at the Brooklyn Bowl in Brooklyn, New York. In addition to drummer Joe Russo, the band also includes Ween's bassist Dave Dreiwitz, keyboardist Marco Benevento, Scott Metzger on guitar and vocals, and Tom Hamilton of Brothers Past and American Babies on guitar and vocals.
Dead & Company is an American rock band that formed in 2015 with a lineup of former Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart (drums), and Bill Kreutzmann (drums), along with John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti (keyboards). Jay Lane replaced Bill Kreutzmann on drums in 2023.
Holly Bowling is an American pianist, and keyboardist based in San Francisco. She is known for her solo instrumental performances in addition to her work with Ghost Light, Phil Lesh and Friends, and Greensky Bluegrass. She was named by Rolling Stone as one of "Ten New Artists You Need To Know Right Now."
Ghost Light is a five-piece American jam band formed in 2017 by Tom Hamilton, Raina Mullen, Holly Bowling, Scotty Zwang, and Steve Lyons. Ghost Light's debut album, Best Kept Secrets, was named one of Glide's top 20 albums of 2019. Ghost Light has performed on major festival stages and in historic venues including Lockn' Festival, Jam Cruise, Electric Forest Festival, Mission Ballroom, Brooklyn Bowl, The Peach Music Festival and Terrapin Crossroads. Ghost Light toured as an opening act for Greensky Bluegrass in the winter of 2020.
Goose is an American jam band from Wilton, Connecticut. The band consists of Peter Anspach, Jeff Arevalo, Cotter Ellis, Rick Mitarotonda, and Trevor Weekz.