Rubblebucket wants to make Kalamazoo dance

By Katie White
Western Herald

Vermont based, afro-psychedelic-rock-what-have-you band, Rubblebucket will play at The Strutt this Saturday at 11 p.m.

Mixing afro-beats, a percussion section, an interest in art, and a psychedelic rock feel might sound over-ambitious to some, but Rubblebucket is doing just that.

The band that originally started in Burlington, Vt. is taking their new album on the road for a new tour.
This will be the band’s first visit to Kalamazoo, and they can’t wait to share the jams with a new audience.

“We’re really excited more than ever to be bringing this music we feel really confident in,” lead vocalist Kalmia Traver said.
“Actually when I was little my nickname was Kalamazoo.”

The ensemble group, led by Traver, Alex Toth, and Adam Dotson started with ten members. Toth and Traver started out together in another band 5 years ago. They liked the musical chemistry they had together, and wanted to form a new sound. They met Dotson at a parade, hit it off, and from there he came up with the name for the band.

“Adam always wanted to have a band named Rubblebucket with like, an afro-punk beat,” Traver said.

This new CD is a collaborative effort from the whole band, which is quite an undertaking for a band of this size. They’ve broken it down to 8 solid members and all of them bring something unique and fresh to Rubblebucket’s already eclectic sound.

“We’ve got afro-beat influence, and then a lot of us have studied jazz, it’s not really want we’re focusing on, but I think it definitely comes out in the seams,” Traver said, “then the folk, James Brown sort of party on stage, dancing having a big happy time, that influence. Sort of like a rock, almost psychedelic, influence. People say we kind of sound like Talking Heads which I think is true.”

Rubblebucket’s shows include multitudes of influences as well. They like to involve the audience, and get people in the crowd dancing and clapping. The band’s energy and audience influence turns venues into full-fledged dance parties.

“It’s definitely a party. It’s a big party all the time. Our music just is really danceable,” Traver said. “We like to keep the people on their toes!”

The show is not only high octane for the audience, but for the band as well. After all the waiting, setting up, and finally getting on stage it turns into a big energy release. Through all the energy and dancing and hype, Traver compares performing and being on stage with her bandmates to be like meditation.

“I’m like, finally free to get into the music,” Traver said.
“The music is so rhythmic and pulsating, and in the best moments of that we can all sort of come together as a band and just lose our minds and totally live through the music.”

This “spicy” band, as proclaimed by Traver, will be stopping by Kalamazoo’s The Strutt on West Michigan Avenue, Saturday Nov. 7. The show is 21+ and starts at 11 p.m. Tickets are $6 at the door.

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Posted by heraldstaff on Nov 4 2009. Filed under A & E, Weekend Scene. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

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