The Bamboos, The PsydeProjects @ Manning Bar, Sydney(20/05/11)

Tue 24th May, 2011 in Gig Reviews

The Bamboos have been moving the masses for 10 years this year, starting out as a promising funk clique from Melbourne and developing into one of Australia’s most celebrated live acts. They’ve made huge waves in Europe and the States and earned the respect of many luminaries of the genre, like Syl Johnson ( Take Me To The River ) and New Orleans legend Eddie Bo. They’ve got some sort of weird funk superpower that gives them infinite stamina and diamond precision timing and infuses their tunes with white hot soul. It’s a potent mix that’s carried them this far and doesn’t show any signs of fatigue. They might actually be invincible – it remains to be proven otherwise.

Melbourne hip hop outfit the Psyde Projects helped them out, supplying some momentum and establishing an upbeat tone to the evening. Despite bordering on caricature they stopped short, and I pin their success on their DJ who goes by the slightly sinister name Mr Moonshine. His dexterity was good and his feel for digging wasn’t bad, offering some nice choice in breaks. The group didn’t blow me away, and they lack the depth at this point in their career to carry a show this big on their own, but in this context they worked.

One thing I love about funk acts, and particularly The Bamboos, is that to achieve the sound that defines them they usually require several thousand members. They fill the stage with suits and brass instruments and speakers and cables and noise, and they approach their craft like a complex machine consisting of many distinct but equally important components. Despite being an intrinsically organic form of music (it’s incredibly visceral and warm), there’s a high degree of mechanical complexity to it, and the players attack their instruments with equal parts head and heart. Timing is crucial, as is dexterity and rhythm, and the arrangements they execute can be formidably sophisticated. That being said, they do use a lot of looping grooves and repeated patterns, allowing us to find our way in and make friends with the rhythm and not be too alienated by the cold mechanics it often relies on.

Technical notes aside, the magic of The Bamboos is the unadulterated fun and warmth they share through their music, and the way they can tease out a smile and have everyone scrunching up their faces in concentration so easily. Their set was a breathless exercise in stamina and swing, with the circular breathing of the brass being perfectly translated into the audience’s enjoyment – there was no time to stop and catch your breath, you had to work out a way of getting down and catching up at the same time. The crowd ate it up, exploring grooves and textures and really giving back what they got out. Each person focused on a different aspect of the show. Some got lost in the rough seas of the brass, while others found a home in the tight spaces in guitarist Lance Ferguson’s fret work (which by the way was absolutely exceptional).

It was such a shame the mix didn’t quite get it right for Kylie Auldist. She’s got an amazing voice, obviously, but it didn’t seem to jump out in front like it should. Lyrical content is perhaps not as essential to funk as the music, but it would be nice to have some idea what she was singing about. Instead, Auldist played the part of just another instrument, and while it’s certainly not a bad thing (she has incredible depth and range) it would have been even better to understand her. On the other hand, her vibrancy was so irrepressible and her smile so big it ultimately negated any aspect of her performance that wasn’t up to scratch. Soul and funk is after all pretty immune to structured criticism – it just feels good, or it doesn’t, and believe me when I say it felt good.

Ten years of making music gave the Bamboos a rich catalogue to mine, and the set list was a solid mix of old and new. Their latest cut, 4, has earned some enviable press due to its accessible new millennium sound combined with an obvious respect and love for classic late 60’s powerhouse funk, and they played several tracks like Got To Get It Over and a cracking version of Typhoon ( Anton Delecca’s flute sounded super nice) that really lifted the room. They sped up the tempo from the recorded versions, and the momentum built to dangerous levels, threatening to leave us behind.

The band worked hard and was airtight, really showing off ten years of experience. No doubts, they’re a very well oiled and vigorously maintained machine. Ben Grayson’s Hammond gurgled and boiled underneath the rhythm section and his beautifully timed flourishes were fantastic. There’s something fluid and juicy to the sound of the organ that counterpoints the hard edge of the guitar work and brass really well. The Bamboos are masters of crafting tunes rich in texture and feeling and despite the breakneck speed band leader Lance Ferguson’s playing still added a sense of anticipation to every note, maximizing gaps and spaces but still strictly adhering to the laser-cut timing.

At the end of the day, funk is meant to move your hips. There’s a simple primal quality to it that makes even bad funk infectious. The Bamboos however have enjoyed unrivalled success on the Australian circuit and don’t need to concern themselves with ‘bad funk’. We all had almost illegal amounts of fun helping them celebrate ten years of parties, records, grooves, shows, accolades, musicians, crowds, and soul music and If there’s any justice they’ll be around in another ten years, offering sweet, funky respite from what can sometimes be a pretty un-funky world.