Article Contributed by Elliot Engebretson
Published on January 2, 2026
The New Mastersounds | Denver, Colorado | December 31st, 2025 | photos by Elliot Engebretson
After 26 years together, the Leeds-bred international funk group The New Mastersounds has decided to step back gracefully from international touring. This past weekend at Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom, Eddie Roberts, Simon Allen, Pete Shand, and Joe Tatton put on a masterclass in pocket awareness—a spectacle of harmonic jazz and funk—and proved one final time to the world why they are one of the greatest funk bands to ever grace a musical stage, as they waved “Ta Ta For Now” to their American fanbase in two career-spanning shows at Cervantes Ballroom in Denver, Colorado.
The roots of The New Mastersounds trace back to the late 1990s in Leeds, England, where guitarist Eddie Roberts was running a nightclub called The Cooker. While expanding the space, Roberts saw an opportunity to add a live band to complement the DJ-driven nights already taking place. He reunited with drummer Simon Allen, whom he had previously played with in 1997 under the name The Mastersounds, a project that at the time featured a different bassist and no organ.
Through mutual friends and the tight-knit Leeds music scene, bassist Pete Shand and Hammond organist Bob Birch joined the fold, and The New Mastersounds were officially born. Their very first rehearsal proved so promising that it resulted in a release on Blow It Hard Records, which issued two limited-edition 7-inch singles in 2000. Momentum built quickly. Regular appearances at London’s Jazz Café helped solidify their reputation in the UK, and soon enough the buzz carried them across the Atlantic.
Once in the US, The New Mastersounds became fixtures of the funk and jazz circuit, tearing through late-night Jazz Fest sets, club residencies, and festival stages nationwide. Over the years, they assembled a formidable catalog that now includes fifteen original studio albums, four live records, and collaborations with some of the most respected names in contemporary music.
Flash forward 25 years, and the band has performed on countless stages around the world; however, Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom in Denver, Colorado felt like a fitting place to close this chapter. The Denver venue has long been a home base for Eddie Roberts, and the connection between the band and the city has always been genuine. Each show featured entirely different setlists, special guests, unexpected covers, and deep cuts pulled from across The New Mastersounds’ expansive catalog.
“We’re gonna play all the slow stuff tonight,” drummer Simon Allen joked as they took the stage for the final time on New Year’s Eve, drawing laughs from the eager crowd. The band played two full sets both nights—zero repeats, all grooves. What makes The New Mastersounds so enduring is their commitment to tight simplicity.
Eddie Roberts, perpetually the sharpest-dressed person in the room, leads from the front with his 1965 Gibson hollow body, striking clean, cutting lines that carry echoes of Wes Montgomery, the soulfulness of George Benson, and a distinctly modern edge that belongs solely to NMS. The band’s vintage tones, swirling Hammond organ, and razor-sharp precision create a timeless sound that they have built their career on.
By the time midnight hit on 12/31, Cervantes had turned into a full-on celebration. Balloons dropped from the ceiling as the crowd hugged, danced, and soaked in the moment. Eddie Roberts popped a bottle of champagne, some of it landing on his well-tailored suit. He paused for a moment, gave his bandmates a sip from the bottle, and the band kept playing.
Sweat, smiles, and heavy grooves filled the room as The New Mastersounds stretched the night out as long as they could. Playing until nearly 2 AM, the band ripped through hits spanning their entire catalog, as well as some great covers like Paul Simon’s “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” and the Grateful Dead’s “Help On The Way,” done with no lyrics, of course.
It was a full-blown funk sanctuary—a blossom of extraordinary light and sound—and a beautiful stamp on their illustrious career. All night, stories were being told about where people first saw the band, how many shows they’d been to, and what their favorite NMS deep cuts were. It was beautiful chaos, and the band kept the funk riffs going late into the night to celebrate their final moments on stage in the US as a band.
While The New Mastersounds chapter may be coming to a close in the US, fans of Eddie Roberts can look forward to a new chapter beginning soon. “When three modern groove masters of modern funk and soul-jazz converge, sparks are bound to fly.” That’s the introduction to The Breaks, which brings guitarist Eddie Roberts (The New Mastersounds), drummer Stanton Moore (Galactic), and organist Robert Walter (The Greyboy Allstars) into one tight, focused trio set to play their first shows in 2026.
“Rooted in the tradition of late-’60s organ trios and hard-hitting boogaloo, The Breaks push the sound forward with deep-pocket rhythms, tight arrangements, and fearless improvisation.” So while we wave “Ta Ta For Now” to The New Mastersounds, the funk is always waiting right around the corner. Until then, God bless The New Mastersounds—one of the funkiest and tightest bands to ever do it.
