Great sound quality! Awesome show! LISTEN TO IT NOW!!! I think s01t02 is Techionics (which Eric Levy turns into a funky rhodes jam set to a similar tempo as Jan Jan). After Kai's solo, they break back into this jam and Levy plays some killer Jan Hammer sounding shit on his Moog Little Phatty. I love Kai's newer tune (Low self esteem?), Great bluesy guitar and key solo in Uptown Tipitina's. I certainly agree with Greg S. about Ishmael & Isaac. What it comes down to is this: These guys are ON IT, all the time, everything they play is gold.




You can also find a review of these jazz kitchen shows on Garaj Mahal's website (http://www.garajmahal.net/announcements/Announcement.htm)

Here it is:

Garaj Mahal cannot be accurately quantized by language, but tradition encourages soundbite stylistic monikers, so, here goes: electric jazz/funk fusion with a serious world bent. The tunes displayed a melodic, unison-driven sensibility and an affinity for odd-meter feels with well-defined parts that had a tendency to explode into excited conversations. The first night was simply not enough; many others and I returned Saturday with cash in hand without hesitation.

The players were absolutely virtuosic: the guitar-and-keyboard game of tag (perpetrated by the former professor/student pair of Fareed Haque and Eric Levy) lasted throughout the two evenings and displayed a fiery psychic connection between the two players. Kai Eckhardt and Alan Hertz, bass and drums, anticipated every feint and juke between Haque and Levy, prodding and answering accordingly.

Highlights included a Trilok Gurtu/John McLaughlin-inspired volley of tabla vocalizations (Eckhardt played with the aforementioned duo in the '80s), a raucous cover of Pee-Wee Ellis' "The Chicken," which featured a blazing tenor solo by guest Rob Dixon and "Ivory Tower," an unreleased cut wherein Eckhardt beatboxed a groove, handed it over to Alan Hertz on the kit, began rapping about the corruptive potential of power and capped it off with a ridiculously nasty unison-oriented B-section that forced my jaw down and my right eyebrow up.

Garaj Mahal were also hilarious and laid back, with Hertz injecting much ever-popular anti-Bush/Cheney humor, eliciting rounds of warm response that will probably get us all prosecuted under the Patriot Act.

Eckhardt, without missing a beat, freestyled a rhyme about Bush stealing pensions; it was equal parts hilarious, awe-inspiring and scary.

Garaj Mahal forged an ecstatic audience through their sheer groove power. Hanging with the band after the show found them to be approachable, kind and thankful. Their most recent album, "Blueberry Cave" (Harmonized Records), won the Best Album, Jam Category at the Independent Music Awards this year and is not to be missed.

~ Andy Newell
Revire of the Jazz Kitchen show

Patty she got no meat...I freakin love that song. Very great quality on this one. Thanks for putting this one up.

track 2 is a choice cut called Techionics. Check out 4-21-05 for another great version of this tune.

this show was phenomenal and these tapes sound great.....

Setlist, to the best of my agility:

Set One
s01t01: Make a Hippy Happy
s01t02: ?
s01t03: Kai Solo >
s01t04: ?
s01t05: banter
s01t06: Low Self Esteem
s01t07: Ishmael and Isaac
s01t08: Uptown Tipitina's
s01t09: banter
s01t10: Ivory Tower

Set Two
s02t01: Paladin
s02t02: The Chicken*
s02t03: banter
s02t04: Gulam Sabri
s02t05: banter
s02t06: Meatless Patty
s02t07: Mondo Garaj
s02t08: encore crowd
s02t09: Celtic Indian

And folks, what a great show this is. Fantastic show, great sound quality. Download now for just about the best music here on the Archive.

Amazing show.... This Ishmael & Isaac is absolutely UNBELIEVABLE (it's the 4th "unknown" on the list).

It's always awesome to be blessed with some fresh Garaj. This matrix sounds fantastic with a great performance by the band as well.

Nice job Shawn, and thanks for your efforts (and Grider too)