Spoonbeach

April 14, 2012

Last Thursday, I had the pleasure of catching Spoonbeach at the Culture Room opening for Grammy Award Winning “Los Lonely Boys”. Lead Singer Joey Cuchiarra and Spoonbeach rocked the mob with an eight song set list which rivaled if not over shadowed that of their cohorts “Fatking Bulla” and the “The Lonely Boys” which were plagued with sound problems thoughtout their set. Regardless, Spoonbeach stormed through eight magnificent powerful and technically challenging songs which included their opener “Rainforest”, where Joey showcased his dominant and commanding baritone voice and his truly gifted bass chops. This song will make even veteran bass players like Sting and Geddy Lee turn their heads. The set continued through several magnificently crafted and dynamic songs like “If with You”, “Solitary Castaway”, “Trust”, and even two new songs “Soñar” and “Adios de Ti” sung completely in Spanish. However, my favorites of the night were the two closers “ Sun” and “ Fragile” which returned to their signature sound and allowed Bob Lidell on Guitar, Steve Monell on drums, and the incredible Devon Smith on Keyboards, show off their incredible talents. Bob’s soulful lead and phrasing in “Sun” make even a seasoned guitarist like Eric Clapton cream. Devon’s Yamaha sounded close enough to a B-3 organ to make even Jon Lord take notice. Couple that with his technical yet emotionally inspired fingering and you had nothing less than spectacular. Steve’s drumming was jazzy, precise and as tight as a tourniquet. Keeping up with Joey’s bass slapping is no easy feat, yet Steve was there, present beat for heart pounding beat followed by fill by heart stopping fill. He is truly the backbone of this band. Their Latin-Funk, Reggae-Rock influences were clearly noticeable inspiring and thrilled all in attendance. Spoonbeach is scheduled to perform live yet again at the finals of SunFest Rock ‘n Roll Shootout at the Seminole Coconut Casino on this Thursday, April 17th, 2012 at 8:00PM. Admission here is Free! They will also be appearing at the Native Florida Tap Room & Music Hall on April 21st, 2012 at 9:00 pm. Cover at the door is $ 5.00. So turn off those Wii games, and put away that TV remote and treat yourself to some Spoonbeach, the best music south Florida has to offer. You’ll thank me later! - Hector Barrera

Artist: Spoonbeach
Album: Spoonbeach
Review by Gary Hill

Music that blends different genres generally falls into two types. The first is the complex variety. It’s music that seems to thrive on rapid changes and forcing disparate styles together with often musically violent results. When it works; it’s art. When it fails; it’s hard to sit through. The second type is music that combines things in such a way that it feels natural. It’s the type of music that holds a groove and seems instantly familiar. That type of sound reveals its complexity only on deeper analysis. Such is the soundscape created by Spoonbeach. The music is a unique combination of Latin sounds, classic rock, progressive rock, jam sounds, funk and fusion. Yet, it never feels strained. The listener gets caught in the mood and just flows along. Only by digging deeply into the varied sounds is the mixed up nature of sounds revealed.

While the overall balance of the album seldom shifts far in one direction or another, there are songs that feel more like a certain genre than other cuts. The thing is, whatever direction Spoonbeach pulls the sound, it always stirs the soul and gets under the skin. Even when it does head heavily in one direction, it still feels organic and connected to the rest of the sounds on the set. This is the kind of music that doesn’t require any kind of learning curve.

“Wonder” opens the set and its sound covers ground between classic rock textures, jam band music and progressive rock. It’s accessible and tasteful, yet doesn’t feel lacking in flavor or style at all. This is poppy, but also meaty. The chorus calls to mind a jazzy Grand Funk Railroad or Rare Earth, and there are some retro keyboards sounds and sultry saxophone on display.

A funky bass line drives “Rainforests.” And there is definitely a Latin flavor built into the cut, along with hints of reggae and a lot of jazz. The chorus is again quite familiar in texture and built on a great hook, while the horn section commands a lot of attention. Plus there’s a smoking hot guitar solo built into to carry the mid-section. This is like Santana meets Spyro Gyra with some Captain Beyond built into the choruses.

“Solitary Castaway” combines the jazz elements with a progressive rock sort of texture. It’s kind of like a cross between the mellower era of Rush with Toto and the aforementioned Spyro Gyra. The mid-section of the tune takes on more of a jam band element.

They take it into mellower territory with the smooth jazz styled “Crystal Highway.” Somehow the tune seems to combine that Spyro Gyra sound with Steely Dan and even a little Pablo Cruise. The bass brings a rubbery groove to “Downscale” and the percussion and vocals call to mind Santana while that Spyro Gyra element still hangs out. The bridge has more of a classic rock texture.

“Trust” comes in with some definite funk but shifts towards more progressive rock like material, think “Rush” again. Percussion starts “Sun” and it is, in many ways, the most directly progressive rock oriented cut. Of course, there’s still a lot of fusion to be heard. The vocals are more subdued than on the rest of the material, almost in a spacey kind of style. Still, there is some soul carried on the vocal delivery and some steamy guitar soloing emerges, too. That guitar soloing turns a bit like a bluesy Hendrix-inspired sound later in the piece. “If With You” comes next and it fires out of the gate with a lot of energy. The musical motif is very much along a fusion meets progressive rock style.

Arguably the most jazzy cut on the set, “Silently She Speaks” has a bit of Dave Matthews vibe and both psychedelic rock and progressive rock elements. “Fragile (Handle With Care)” seriously brings the funk to close the set in style. It’s high energy and soulful.

Fans of classic rock and mellow jazz will certainly enjoy this album. Really, though, it’s hard to imagine that there’s anyone out there who wouldn’t get caught up in the killer grooves.

Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)

- Gary Hill