Ajay Coletta loves looking out into the audience from behind his drum kit and
seeing quizzical expressions of anticipation on the faces he sees. "They don't
know what to expect next," he says. "It's as if they're saying to themselves,
`Now what are they going to do?' "
Folks say that a lot at Planet Groove shows. And it's not because they're
skeptical, or worried somehow that the band will pull another lame trick out of
their hat. Au contraire! Planet Groove has the biggest, coolest hatful
of tricks in town, and they never hesitate to reach deep into it when the time
is right. "When an audience doesn't know what's coming next," says Coletta, "it
adds a dimension to the show that people didn't expect to get."
Planet Groove applied that same philosophy to the making of their new album,
Joy Ride. Building on the sonic formula established by their previous
disc, the album is a sizzling, near virtuosic listening experience, colored
with the diverse sensibilities of its members and shot through with the unified
enthusiasm of the creative process. So far, frankly, Joy Ride is the
album of the year around town.
"We worked hard on it," Coletta admits proudly. "We put a little extra time
into it and a lot of extra money, and we really felt like it all paid off." The
other band members -- singer-percussionist Larry Barron, keyboard guy Aaron
Wade, bassist Leith MacArthur, and guitar wiz John Medeiros -- are also happy.
While recruiting the band, Coletta ensured that everyone hold up their end well
enough to shine, but needed people unselfish enough to put the team first. "We
focused on creating a band, not just a bunch of musicians," he says. "Planet
Groove is really a band, and everyone does its part to contribute."
You got that right, Jack. Joy Ride is just as billed, a careening
cruise down a dark desert highway, only there's no cool wind here, just hot,
mostly heavy progressive rock and Latin grooves. While the rhythm section of
Coletta and MacArthur play Atlas by holding everything up from below, Medeiros
and Wade flex their big-ass chops with extraordinary solos and inventive melody
lines. From the opening salvo "El Torpedo" to the throttling "Kamikaze" and the
closing drum workout "ESB (Excessive Sonic Boom)," Planet Groove has settled
into an exhilarating groove all their own. It's adventurous and courageous,
especially considering this kind of smart-guy, progressive bent isn't exactly
what everyone's buzzing about these days. I mean, it's not the flavor of this
or any month -- it may never have been but for a few weeks in the late '60s
when a young Carlos Santana blew away Woodstock -- but it's witty, challenging,
and eminently tasteful stuff.
So where did the Latin element come from? "A lot of the Latin flavor came from
when I studied at Berklee, and they required you to get a handle on samba and
various other rhythms," Coletta says. "When we'd jam early on as a band, I'd
throw salsa beats or sambas at the band and we'd see what we could come up
with. The addition of Larry who sings in Spanish, was a clincher, and Aaron
loves Danilo Perez. Those elements really work together to give us a powerful
Latin feel." Not to mention guitarist Medeiros, who cops some serious Santana
licks, along with the appropriate touch and tone.
And what of the progressive side of Planet Groove? "We get our fat-groove
thing from King Crimson," Coletta admits. "They're a very white band, but they
lay down a really fat groove. With Tony Levin on bass how can you not? It's
really dense and meaty. We like that sound." They like it enough to cover
Crimson's "Elephant Walk" on the new album.
But Planet Groove doesn't extract the brainiac aspects of Crimson for its own
tincture. Rather, they replace it with danceability. "I've been playing drums
for years, and I've always been influenced by diverse drumming, from Miles
Davis, Santana, War. Good drumming always gets people moving. We've found that
you can't pack the place if you don't play dance stuff. If you put down a fat
groove, they'll come out for a good time."
Though it's not in evidence on the album, Planet Groove's live shows feature a
heady dose of Santana. "Every time we play a Santana tune people go crazy,"
says Coletta. "We play `Soul Sacrifice,' which allows us drum and percussion
solos. We play `Bahia,' where I step away from the drums, which changes the
whole vibe. Then there's a verse and chorus of `Smooth,' which isn't our
favorite Santana tune, but people respond to it. Larry sings it in Spanish,
which gives it a twist. Then we play `Oye Como Va.' The Latin-sounding stuff
really brings the ladies out on the dance floor and when the guys see that
well, you know they're not far behind!"
When things get a little sweaty, the band changes tempo, decelerating on their
upbeat cover of Vince Guaraldi's coy "Linus & Lucy" as well as a Wade
keyboard interlude on "All Hands." In the end, what some folks call "too
diverse" is actually a checkerboard of well-selected material held together by
exuberance and seasoned performers. Sure, it's tough to pigeonhole. And, sadly,
there are few if any local radio outlets for what you would essentially have to
file under "Jazz." But if programmers and booking agents don't know what to do
with these guys, don't know how to slot them, well, they've lost their touch
and should look for other work. Bands like Planet Groove, however much in the
gray area they fall, is the kinds of challenging, sophisticated band the music
scene desperately needs to balance out the pop pabulum with which we are
constantly assaulted.
Their creative job now done, PG is plotting its next few moves. They're
shopping for management, and reaching out for elite summer bookings. Their jam
band appeal might hook them up with some likeminded improvisationally
sophisticated folks, though landing a gig at the Hatch Shell in Boston again
this summer would also be prime, too.
"Right now, we're booking festivals and playing out a lot, hoping to get on
some shows with national acts. Maybe we could hook up with some great, fun,
dancey kind of band like Deep Banana Blackout or the String Cheese Incident.
We've also got our eye on the second stage at this summer's Jazz Festival in
Newport, like the Slip did last year."
And when they're in Newport, they might be able to show off that crazy car
pictured on the cover of the album. It's a zany showpiece of a ride, discovered
by Coletta while they were mixing the album down at Dream Edit wuth presiding
engineer Scott Rancourt. "I was walking down the street and saw this car go by
and it all hit me. Joy Ride made so much sense, with that car, our band.
The whole thing came together perfectly."
So it did. Thanks to Newport artist Aylicia's cover car "El Torpedo" and some
pretty incredible songs, everything did work out just perfectly.
Planet Groove's record release party takes place this Saturday at the
Providence Bookstore Café. Call (401) 521-5536.
WANDERING EYE. The Ravers look forward to a CD release party of
their own this Friday, February 22 at Area 22 in Newport. Call (401) 848-0077.
E-mail me with music news at big.daddy1@cox.net.
Issue Date: February 22 - 28, 2002
