Grammy-winning progressive jazz collective Snarky Puppy has shared a preview of their new album, Empire Central, with the single “Trinity”. The song was composed and arranged by guitarist Mark Lettieri and comes with an extended 11-minute in-studio performance video.
Set to release on September 30th via Snarky Puppy’s own GroundUP Music imprint, Empire Central was recorded in front of a live-in-studio audience over eight nights at Deep Ellum Art Company in Dallas, TX. The album features 16 new tracks inspired in part by the city where the group developed after coming together at the University of North Texas’s fabled jazz program. The record also includes the last recorded performance by ’80s funk pioneer and Snarky Puppy’s musical Godfather Bernard Wright, who passed away tragically at age 58 shortly after the sessions that produced the album.
Never afraid of redundancy, Snarky Puppy recorded the new album with a lineup consisting of three guitarists, four keyboardists, two brass, two reeds, a violinist, three percussionists, and three drummers, all led by Snarky Puppy founder Michael League on bass. With videos accompanying the recording, the record marks a return to the format with which Snarky Puppy earned widespread acclaim and viral status following the release of 2013’s We Like It Here. The album expands on the group’s eclectic influences and syncretic style, which fuses jazz, funk, rock, and other genres in a singular blend.
“Snarky Puppy has always been a band that prioritizes the sound of the music,” League noted. “On this record there was some collaboration in the writing process but when a song goes to the band and the players start making suggestions or changing things our collective feeling really comes through. The songs ended up being a lot more direct and funkier than those on our previous records. I think it reflects the many moods of the city’s scene.”
Snarky Puppy has partnered with Osiris Media, the podcast network cofounded by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall, to produce a podcast documenting the writing and recording process of Empire Central, which will premiere this summer.
“Trinity” is now available on all streaming platforms. Watch the extended live version and listen to the song via Soundcloud in the players below. Preorder Empire Central here, and click below to view the album tracklist and band lineup.
Snarky Puppy – “Trinity” (Extended Version)
Snarky Puppy – “Trinity”
The post Snarky Puppy Previews New Album With “Trinity” Single And Live In-Studio Performance Video [Watch/Listen] appeared first on L4LM.
