Future Roots band, The Boston Boys, return home this month after a tour of eight countries throughout Europe and North Africa, concluding with a three week stint in Morocco. Their tour in Morocco, in partnership with the U.S. State Department, is part of cultural exchange programming whose alumni include Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong."Returning to Morocco for a month gave us the freedom to feel integrated into a rich musical community and incorporate some of their traditions. The connections we made inspired us to learn more and branch out even further,” says mandolinst Eric Robertson. “The purpose of music has always been to encourage community, whether through dance, praise, or storytelling.”These influences can be found in their new video “What You Say!?!” that the band shot on location throughout Morocco with Moroccan musicians Bouhssine Foulane and Abdellah El-Miry. Watch here: http://youtu.be/k6kSTaWuc_cTo mark their return to the United States, the band will perform a free homecoming show at Rockwood Music Hall in Manhattan on March 28th in advance of their U.S. tour this April.In only two years, The Boston Boys have performed in over a dozen other countries, both by their own initiative and through tours in partnership with the U.S. State Department. Always the product of teachers and mentors, The Boston Boys are educators themselves and often lead educational workshops in conjunction with their performances. In October 2013, they were the first band to participate in a Music Residency sponsored by Zoo Labs in Oakland, CA, where they recorded their third EP (scheduled for release this May) and studied entrepreneurship with distinguished faculty from the California College of the Arts Design MBA program.
Mandolinist, guitarist, and lead singer, Eric Robertson, initiated the project as a student at Berklee College of Music. He, along with multi-instrumentalist Duncan Wickel, bassist Josh Hari, and drummer Nicholas Falk, deliver a fusion of rock, bluegrass, soul, improvisation, and pop inspired by bedrock artists like Paul Simon, Ray Charles and The Band. Theirs is music made by independent and entrepreneurial musicians with control over their careers and the drive to reach communities around the globe on their own terms.
Future roots quartet The Boston Boys announce the release of their third EP, “Idea of Love” on May 20, 2014. They will play Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 in NYC on Friday, May 23 at 8:00 PM in support. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased here.
This follows a ten date run in Colombia, South America from May 4-14. The boys will spend three days in the cities of Bogotá, Manizales and Armenia leading master classes as well as performing a series of public concerts, all sponsored by local partners in each city and the US Embassy in Bogotá. This comes through American Music Abroad, a cultural exchange program sponsored by the U.S. State Department. Past alumni include Dave Brubreck and Louis Armstrong.
What's a master class? The Boston Boys each have authentic backgrounds in traditional American genres-- jazz, bluegrass, old-time folk, soul, and rock n' roll. These classes allow them to connect with audiences around the world and explore a deep side of American history and culture through the music.
What about the public performances? The Boston Boys win hearts and minds by playing music whose 
sonic identity could only be made in United States. These performances will have a heavy emphasis on original music by The Boston Boys as well as the fusion of their music with local Colombian musicians. Collaborations like these are the basis for drawing different cultures together through the unifying language of music...and they are doing it through new technology too.
“Idea of Love” releases to digital and online stores on May 20 and interactively on the new music app, Sonarc, developed by music collaboration software company Musikara. Sonarc allows you to rearrange the sections of music played by each instrument within a song into your own creation. Using an innovative circular interface designed to allow time to flow through the music in any direction, users will be able to connect with The Boston Boys’ music like never before.
Independently produced at Zoo Labs studio in Oakland, CA; “Idea of Love” features four-part vocal arrangements and instrument signatures that invite listeners to shift their musical touchstones," capturing timeless American songwriting sculpted from the influences of Ray Charles, The Band, and Paul Simon.
Mandolinist, guitarist, and lead singer Eric Robertson initiated the band as a student with fellow graduates of the Berklee College of Music in 2012. He, along with multi-instrumentalist Duncan Wickel, bassist Josh Hari, and drummer Nicholas Falk fuse their backgrounds in soul, bluegrass, pop, jazz, and rock into entirely original layers of sound.
We invite you to listen to the music of The Boston Boys and learn more about their commitment to music education, innovative musical collaborations, and to connect with them on tour.
5/5-15: COLOMBIA - Cultural Exchange Tour with U.S. Embassy in Bogatá
5/20: Release “Idea of Love” EP
5/23: New York City, NY - Rockwood Music Hall II w/ Matuto
5/25: Portland, ME - One Longfellow Square w/ Anna Lombard
Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds is an eight-piece powerhouse that puts a modern spin on classic soul. The band is led by Arleigh Kincheloe (Sister Sparrow), whose astoundingly powerful voice and sly demeanor make for a spellbinding presence onstage. She is backed by the mighty force of The Dirty Birds, a flock of seven men who masterfully lay down thundering grooves and soaring melodies. While each of the Birds are capable of lighting up the stage with jaw-dropping displays of musicianship, it’s clear they’re focused on delivering the band’s infectious music as a single entity. Simply put, the band’s live show is explosive. They debuted new material as official performers of this year’s SXSW and were well received. Their blend of seductive soul and dirty blues-rock will remind audiences that great live music still exists.Their October 2013 EP Release Fight was produced by the legendary Randy Jackson. As quoted by Billboard, “The Fight EP is a collection of four songs that truly captures who we are as a band right now. It takes you from a burning ballad to a sweaty dance party to a classic story of betrayal with 'The Long Way.' The focus of the recording process was to harness the high energy of our live shows, and Randy really helped make that happen," added Kincheloe."For even more soul, the band’s Kadmus Arts Podcast is worth the listen.Their extensive touring journey continues. April 30 / New Orleans, LA / Freret Street Publiq HouseMay 3 / New Orleans, LA / Backbeat Jazz Series @ Blue NileMay 10 / Scranton, PA / Susquehanna BreakdownMay 16 / Buena Vista, NJ / Camp Jam in the PinesMay 30 / Washington, DC / The HamiltonMay 31 / New York, NY / Bowery BallroomJune 6 / Norfolk, CT / Infinity Music HallJune 7 / Hunter, NY / Mountain JamJune 13 / Philadelphia, PA / Underground ArtsJune 14 / Hamden, CT / The Ballroom at The Outer SpaceJune 20 / Portland, ME / Port City Music HallJune 21 / Cambridge, MA / The SinclairJune 28 / Rothbury, MI / Electric ForestJuly 2 / Sturgeon Bay, WI / Harmony by the BayJuly 3 / Algoma, WI / Concerts In The ParkJuly 10 / Nashville, TN / Nashville’s Dancin’July 11 / St. Louis, MO / Broadway Oyster BarJuly 18 / Calgary, AB / Stampede City SessionsJuly 20 / Alta, WY / Targhee FestJuly 23 / Casper, WY / Nicolaysen Art MuseumJuly 24 / Park City, UT / Newpark Town CenterAugust 1 / Mammoth Lakes, CA / Mammoth Festival of BeersAugust 2 / Petaluma, CA / Petaluma Music FestivalAugust 7 / Bethlehem, PA / MusikfestAugust 15 / Asbury Park, NJ / WonderbarAugust 16 / Cockeysville, MD / Hot August Music FestivalSeptember 13 / Danville, IL / Phases of the Moon FestivalNovember 14 / Live Oak, FL / Bear Creek Music & Art Festival
