Steve Swatkins has steadily made waves with his fiercely funky abilities behind the keyboards for years, making a name for himself both as a member of Allen Stone‘s band and as a thrilling special guest on a variety of projects. Now, the talkbox master has amassed a talented band of his own, Swatkins & The Positive Agenda, backed by drummer Tyrone Hendrix, bassist André Zapata, guitarists Peter Knudsen and Jimmy Russell, and Michael Elson on the Hammond B3 organ.
Today, ahead of their Northeast run, Live For Live Music is thrilled to premiere the first full-band recording of Swatkins & The Positive Agenda—”Couldn’t Hurt To Try”, recorded live by Todd Gee of 366 Collective at The Falcon Arts Building studio in Portland, Oregon. The track, an irresistibly optimistic funk-soul cocktail that begs to be danced to, is just as infectious as you’d expect a Swatkins track to be.
Explains Swatkins of the track,
When you really believe strongly in something (like, for example, good music and the power of positivity), you know in your heart that you should try your absolute best, regardless of your inner critic telling you how much easier it would be to not try at all. We here at The Positive Agenda want to encourage you to give it a shot. Whatever that thing is you love very much but have been reluctant to expend effort towards… maybe it’s time to try. Couldn’t hurt. And remember to Have Your Most Best Time.
Check out the live studio video of Swatkins & The Positive Agenda’s “Couldn’t Hurt To Try” below. Also, read on for more information about Steve Swatkins other upcoming projects and performances, including an all-star run with members of Turkuaz and Kung Fu.
Swatkins & The Positive Agenda – “Couldn’t Hurt To Try” – Live at Falcon Arts
[Video: Swatkins]
The Positive Agenda will release music on all major streaming platforms later this year. Currently, Swatkins is bringing that positivity to the Northeast, with a run of shows featuring a band made up of Craig Brodhead (guitar, Turkuaz), Michelangelo Carubba (drums, Turkuaz), Beau Sasser (keys/bass, Kung Fu), and Moorea Masa (vocals).
The run will see the all-star band performing across the Northeast, with the shows kicking off next week on August 13th at New York City’s Rockwood Music Hall. From there, the group will continue to Bridgeport, CT’s The Acoustic on the 14th; Hartford, CT’s Arch Street Tavern on the 15th; and Albany, NY’s Parish House on the 16th. To close things out, the band will perform at Burlington, Vermont’s iconic venue Nectar’s on August 17th ahead of the run-closing final performance at Portland, Maine’s HOME on August 18th.
You can check out a list of Swatkins & The Positive Agenda’s upcoming Northeast dates below. For more information, or to grab your tickets to see Swatty in action, head to his website.
You can also catch Steve Swatkins at the upcoming Brooklyn Comes Alive, set to take place on September 29th at three fan-favorite venues in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Inspired by the vibrant musical communities of Brooklyn and New Orleans, Brooklyn Comes Alive brings together more than 50 artists, allowing them to carry out passion projects, play with their musical heroes, and collaborate in never-before-seen formations. Each attendee receives a wristband that grants them access to every venue, which makes getting from set to set a breeze, recreating and paying homage to the club-hopping atmosphere of Jazz Fest by night.
Swatkins will take part in not one, but two unique sets at 2018’s fourth-annual edition of Brooklyn Comes Alive. Steve will help an all-star lineup of artists pay tribute to Prince with Purple Party, reprising a massively successful late-night performance in New Orleans during this past year’s Jazz Fest. For this special Brooklyn tribute to Prince, the band will include MonoNeon (Prince), Robert “Sput” Searight (Snarky Puppy, Ghost Note), Nate Werth (Snarky Puppy, Ghost Note), Steve Swatkins (Allen Stone), Ryan Jalbert (The Motet), Lyle Divinsky (The Motet), Shira Elias (Turkuaz), Sammi Garett (Turkuaz), Chris Bullock (Snarky Puppy), Mike “Maz” Maher (Snarky Puppy), Will Trask (Great American Taxi), Megan Letts (Mama Magnolia), and Casey Russell (Magic Beans). For more information and artist insight on the highly-anticipated Brooklyn Comes Alive debut of Purple Party, check out the band profile here.
Swatkins will also take part in Soul Tracks, an old-school soul revue led by Turkuaz vocalist Shira Elias. Joining Swatkins and Elias for this soulful set will be Nikki Glaspie, Nick Cassarino, and Nate Edgar (The Nth Power), James Casey (Trey Anastasio Band), Lyle Divinsky (The Motet) and Joel Gonzalez.
For more information about this one-of-a-kind live music experience, head to the Brooklyn Comes Alive website.