SticklerPhonics
with special guests From Flowers to Flies
October 21, 2023
Dinner & drinks at 6pm, show starts at 7:30pm
Scott Amendola, the drummer, composer and bandleader who's been a creative force on the Bay Area jazz scene (and far beyond) for the past three decades, knows all about the power of subtraction. His new stripped-down trio SticklerPhonics brings together long-time collaborators Raffi Garabedian on tenor saxophone and trombonist Danny Lubin-Laden, New York-seasoned improvisers who have worked together since their formative years in the vaunted Berkeley High Jazz Band, circa 2003.
The trio has pllunged into the unmediated terrain that opens up in the absence of the usual guidelines, "a situation where there's not bass and no chords," Amendola said. "The sound is ever-evlolving. We're really settling in but there's also the feeling that there are places to go. We've been adding my electronics and Danny bringing in a little looper. We're just getting started."
With all three players contributing original compositions, SticklerPhonics is a volatile combo that can draw on a vast continuum of jazz practices, from traditional jazz polyphony and ambient soundscaps to funk and free jazz. Amendola, who first gained national attention in the Grammy-nominated three-guitar and drums band T. J. Kirk, has a deep well of experience in unusual instrumental settings. His long-running duo with Hammond B-3 organist Wil Blades got its start when they developed an impressively detailed version of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's masterpiece "Far East Suite."
We are also excited to welcome local newcomers From Flowers to Flies for their first show at Sierra Meadows! Drawing from an eclectic mix of influences including modern indie, 70s prog, post-punk, and chamber pop, From Flowers to Flies have crafted a darkly engaging sound that is wholly their own. The band formed in central California in 2022 out of a desire to make cathartic music that was indicative of these uncertain times. Their songs hurtle through a landscape of anxiety and apocalyptic imagery, but never stray too far from a throughline of hope.
Tickets for this show are $15 in advance or $20 at the door.
Kids 17 & under are free!
