Deep jamtronic grooves at Suite E Studio with Future Vintage, Moot Booxle, Moon Show

Deep jamtronic grooves at Suite E Studio with Future Vintage, Moot Booxle, Moon Show

Deep grooves at Suite E Studio with Future Vintage, Mootbooxlé, Moon Show

Friday, April 24, was a typical night around the Tampa Bay area, dozens of outstanding concerts to attract music fans of all sorts. We had not seen Future Vintage perform in far too long and chose to attend their show at Suite E Studios in the St. Petersburg Art District. Future Vintage refers to their music as ElectroFunk, to which we would add trance-dance disco jazz fusion jamtronica, in no particular order. They were on the bill with two acts we knew nothing about: Moon Show and Moot Booxlé.

This night was akin to a miner striking gold… THREE TIMES.

Actually, make that FOUR. People always talk about the “afters,” but nobody talks about the “befores.” We arrived an hour early, and the only gents in the place were taking care of last-minute details. All the musicians had gone out to grab food, their equipment all set and ready to go. Playing on the huge video screen was a live broadcast of ensembleNEWSRQ, an ensemble of Sarasota musicians performing in real time at Sarasota Opera House, 18 of them!

The music was spectacular modern classical music and very trance-dance-y as well. Matt Taylor, one of the men running the evening and half of Moon Show, explained what we were seeing and hearing was a magnificent performance of Steve Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians,” which debuted in 1976. His wife, Nicole Estima, was one of the four female vocalists, and there were also violin, cello, two clarinets doubling bass clarinet, four pianos, three marimbas, two xylophones, and vibraphone (with no motor). We got to hear and see most of the hour-long show. Mind ALREADY blown. THAT’S how you do “befores”!

The entire video of the three groups is up and available now!!!

0:04:30 – 0:51:00  Moon Show

1:04:00 – 1:00:00  Moot Booxlé

2:00:00 – 3:35:00  Future Vintage

Moon Show apparently used to be a quartet, but Matt Taylor and Austen van der Bleek do just fine as the reformed duo, plus Rob Morey running sound and videoing everything superbly. They refer to their music as “synthtronic, jam-infused, space-a-delic,” and that’s a good start. Austen played synth, keyboards, and guitar, and he sings as well. Matt handled production and played synth and piano.

Moon Show offered up a swirling balancing act of grooves and vibes through their first 20-minute romp. It was a joyous set, so entertaining, jamtronic goodness dripping from every note. It fit the vibe of the space perfectly, artwork, colored lights, and more filling the small room. Austen’s voice was particularly impressive mixing with the all the keyboard sounds and production and his guitar-playing was brilliant. Matt matched his vibes with plenty of his own. Their second 27-minute “tune” was equally delightful.

It is always such a joy “discovering” musicians new to you! We’ve seen Austen van derBleek as a solo DJ, but this pairing was special.

It is worth noting here that Rob Morey and Matt had the sound dialed in so perfectly all night long. It gave the crowd plenty of opportunity to move through what became a non-stop dance party.

Next up was a Fort Myers artist named Matt Baxley, a one-man show on a phalanx of keyboards and production equipment. As a great play on words, his stage name is Moot Booxlé. Area king of the keyboards Matt Giancola (Future Vintage) leaned over before the Moot Booxlé set to note that he is a superb player, which was confirmed almost immediately. Moot has a complete command of his keyboards. On his page he has referenced @ashunsoundmachines Hydrasynth Deluxe and ASM Leviasynth in his arsenal. Whatever they were, they were amazing.

He too dropped deep jamtronic grooves and ridiculously danceable music on the dance floor, and the crowd at it up. His vocals were very effective, and the synths again swirled about Suite E in joyful fashion; he is an incredible jazz player. He plays primarily in and around the Fort Myers–Naples area. We need more of his music in Tampa Bay. His last song hit this deep, deep vibe that sounded so familiar; I asked Giancola: “Who does he think he is? Future Vintage?” It was such a great shout-out on Moot’s part, and it would pay dividends later.

It was time for Future Vintage. This trio has been performing for 14+ years, and they always bring the ElectroFunk. Matt Giancola plays keyboards and synths (and guitar) and handles talk box vocals and composition. Trevor McDannel plays electric bass and synth bass. Those two are founding members. Drummer Tucker Sody is a more recent addition (also to Ajeva), and he adds a great spark wherever he goes.

Their 100-minute set was more joy and delight, beginning with several new compositions. Giancola brought out most of his keyboard toys (OK, some of them) and got them dancing, adding talk box vocals on several tunes. McDannel was dropping amazing space bass while Sody kept everyone on the groove. They offered up a Roy Ayers tune and invited Moot Booxlé to join them. That was a spectacular decision, Moot on Moog and Giancola on his toys as they traded and blended riffs throughout the song. We need more of that! The show, slated to end at 11 p.m., was leaping toward midnight when Future Vintage threw down one of their favorite jams: “Supernova.” Appropriately named!

Bravo/Brava to everyone involved in hosting this magnificent dance party.