Mo\'Fone
Sling Shot
Some of the funkiest New Orleans music being made outside of New Orleans. With Special guests Dave Ellis, Kirk Joseph (Dirty Dozen Brass Band) & Dann Zinn. Unique 2-saxes-and-drums trio powers its way through funky and creative original compositions.
"A minimal but mighty romp!" (East Bay Express)
"Like a furious detachment of the Tower of Power horns." (ejazznews.com)
"A powerhouse to be reckoned with. Outrageously great." (allaboutjazz.com)
"In a word, Mo'Fone delivers." (allaboutjazz.com)
"One of the hottest bands to surface in a long while." (jazzwest.com)
"My favorite album of the year by far [Surf's Up]." (Contra Costa Times)
"One of the funkiest jazz albums you'll ever hear [Surf's Up]." (Carl Abernathy)
"Snaps and crackles like James Brown's Famous Flames mixed with a New Orleans second line [Sling Shot]." (jazzweekly.com)
Voted Best Jazz Group in East Bay Express Readers' Poll 2008.
Nominated Best Funk Band in SF Weekly Music Awards 2008.
With its surprising and highly combustible line-up of two saxmen and one drummer, the Bay Area-based group MO’FONE has thrilled audiences with some of the funkiest jazz—and jazziest funk—being played today. Powering its way through inventive high-energy original compositions and navigating unexpected tunes by the likes of Weather Report, John Scofield, and Led Zeppelin, MO’FONE makes a huge sound that belies its compact size.
Combining serious musicianship with an infectious sense of fun onstage, MO’FONE also manages to groove with abandon while keeping miraculously in balance, as each member of the band pushes his instrument well beyond its role in a more traditional trio. What’s more, MO’FONE delivers adventurous riffs and grooves, while achieving a sound that’s not only accessible, but instantly addictive. Their groovy improvisations and original concept have earned them the award for Best Jazz Group in the 2008 East Bay Express Readers’ Poll, and secured them slots at the San Francisco and Sonoma Jazz Festivals, in addition to gigs at the Bay Area’s premier live music venues.
“I was hooked from the first track,” wrote the Contra Costa Times of the band’s debut disc, Surf’s Up (Evander Music, 2003). “Mo’Fone proves it’s the biggest little band on the scene. On each piece, the trio finds ingenious ways of creating a full, multitextured, hard swinging sound.”
A healthy portion of that driving sound comes from the mighty baritone sax and bass clarinet of JIM PETERSON, alternating seamlessly between walking bass lines and powerful melodic riffs. A stalwart of the Bay Area scene for more than 20 years, Jim is a veteran of leading bands like Mitch Woods and His Rocket 88s, Indigo Swing, and Motordude Zydeco. Soaring overhead on alto sax, clarinet and flute is LARRY DE LA CRUZ, whose own impressive résumé includes stints with Phil Woods, Bobby Hutcherson, the Temptations, Boca do Rio, and Doc Severinsen. Completing the MO’FONE magic is drummer JEREMY STEINKOLER, “a master of second line syncopation” (SF Bay Guardian) whose orchestral approach to percussion drives the trio’s turn-on-a-dime dynamics and gives MO’FONE its third ceaselessly inventive solo voice.
As AllAboutJazz.com summed up the group’s exhilarating and cohesive sound: “This jazz trio is a powerhouse to be reckoned with…. If Mo’Fone doesn’t blow your socks off, you’re not paying attention.”
Jazz: New Orleans Jazz