Summerfest finds '09: Soulive
The funk has landed at The Big Gig
To help coax some serendipity into your Summerfest experience, Decider goes looking this week for side-stage shows that you might not have circled on your calendar yet, but should. We've already looked at Cory Chisel And The Wandering Sons and Riverboat Gamblers. Today, we get funky.
Soulive (2:30 p.m. July 1, Harley-Davidson Roadhouse)
Good for fans of: Dancing, laughs, good times, etc.
Background: Funk trio Soulive gets onstage and kills. The structural foundations of venues are compromised by the band’s heaviness. Some fans think Soulive faltered when it started having guest vocalists and radio aspirations, with the band’s dirty, mean funk playing second fiddle to a mature, overproduced R&B sound. But the band has recaptured some of its swagger on 2009’s Up Here, thanks to the brass balls of horn section The Shady Horns and energetic soul singer Nigel Hall, both of whom are accompanying Soulive on the road.
Sneak preview: Here is a clip of the band performing in April at the Double Door in Chicago. Find out more at myspace.com/soulive.
