The Molehill Orkestrah is an eight piece ensemble from Tucson, Arizona, with a cast that includes cello, violin, trombone, sax, bass, drums, mandolin, and guitar. The group specializes in wild and evocative gypsy music--heart breaking ballads, heel kicking romps, and everything in between. They have been performing for ten years strong and voted Best of Tucson in World Music (2008 Tucson Weekly Critics Choice Awards).
With a variety of musical backgrounds ranging from classical to punk rock, from mariachi to jazz, the members of Molehill Orkestrah fuse diverse contemporary genres with Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Klezmer, and Gypsy influences. Their original works are often infused with seamless improvisation, creating vistas that unfold and expand. Molehill will inspire you to dance 'till ya sweat, kiss your mama, or cry!
The Dia de los Muertos celebrations in downtown Tucson served as the impetus for the groups' formation ten years ago. Molehill remains an integral part of the event and continues to collaborate with a variety of artists, musicians, and performance troupes. In their gypsy wagon, a 1966 Dodge book mobile, they have toured both the United States and Canada, performing their unique music in equally diverse settings such as: historic theaters, punk rock clubs, High Sierra Music Festival, the Knitting Factory's Klezmer brunch, five-star resorts, the Oregon Country Fair, Montreal's Just For Laughs International Street-arts Festival, bay area beach parties, art galleries, and alleys.
The Molehill Orkestrah has released five albums: Live From Underground (ltd. Edition - out of press), Congress Live (official bootleg), Tu Anima Mundi, TranScenic, and most recently Language of Bones.
Sensual and refined to chaotic and frenzied, this ensemble tears it up and puts it back together again.
"It's a downright riveting combo, and perhaps most refreshing of all, Molehill plays with a verve that makes me want to describe the band in terms most often reserved for punk rock: Molehill plays with a primal urgency that is undeniable."
-Steven Siegel, Tucson Weekly
"Molehill trades in traditional gypsy music, it takes you on a journey of improvisation that ebbs, flows, and makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up."
-Soundbites, Tucson Weekly
*TranScenic is Molehill on the road. It is a collection of songs recorded live over the course of a year in Arizona, Portland, and Seattle. Mixed and mastered in Tucson, AZ with great sound quality, this album is pure and raw, live and electric.
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