Brooklyn Comes Alive, the one-day festival well-known for presenting a potent mix of unique new projects, rare collaborations, and nationally touring heavy-hitters, has announced the lineup for its return to The Brooklyn Mirage on Saturday, September 17th, 2022 [ticket info].
This year, Brooklyn Comes Alive will feature livetronica heroes STS9, avant-groove explorers Medeski Martin & Wood, future-funk sextet Lettuce, and the debut of Cool Cool Cool, a new project from former members of Turkuaz that is funky, fresh, and ready to throw a party.
Built from the vibrant live music community of Brooklyn, NY and inspired by New Orleans, LA and its famed Jazz & Heritage Festival, Brooklyn Comes Alive has been breaking the mold of traditional festivals with unprecedented music experiences since 2015. This year, Brooklyn Comes Alive—presented by GMP Live, Avant Gardner, Bowery Presents, and Live For Live Music—will donate a portion of every ticket sold to Backline, a national nonprofit organization that connects music industry professionals and their families with mental health and wellness resources.
Much like past “Comes Alive” events, the 2022 Brooklyn Comes Alive lineup presents a number of exciting firsts and notable milestones. The event will serve as STS9’s first show in NYC since its last Brooklyn Mirage takeover in 2019, and the band plans to celebrate its return to Brooklyn with a two-hour late-night set. This will also mark the first time STS9 or any of its members have participated in a “Comes Alive” event.
Similarly, Medeski Martin & Wood, who have not played together on their home turf in NYC since 2019 and have not performed live since before the pandemic, will use the special appearance to celebrate their 30th anniversary as a band, which took place last year. While organist John Medeski and drummer Billy Martin have taken part in Brooklyn Comes Alive in years past, this rare Medeski Martin & Wood show will mark bassist Chris Wood‘s BCA debut as well as the trio’s first official appearance at the festival—an event that grew from the same Brooklyn improvisational music scene that they helped champion in the ’90s and ’00s.
Lettuce will notch its first-ever Brooklyn Comes Alive appearance on Saturday, September 17th at The Brooklyn Mirage as the band continues to tour in support of its latest LP, Unify, but the outfit’s individual members are all “Comes Alive” veterans. Drummer Adam Deitch, in particular, has been a part of six sets at Brooklyn Comes Alive, making this year’s Lettuce performance his seventh—the most of any artist in the event’s history. Previous festival attendees might remember his four sets in 2016 (J Dilla Tribute, [Br]eaking [Bi]scuits with members of The Disco Biscuits, DRKWAV, and Manic Focus & Friends) as well as his Adam Deitch Quartet set in 2018 and his Break Live Science Band sunset show in 2021.
Cool Cool Cool is a new band made up of Craig Brodhead (guitar/keys), Chris Brouwers (trumpet/keys), Michelangelo Carubba (drums), Shira Elias (vocals), Sammi Garett (vocals), Greg Sanderson (tenor sax), and Josh Schwartz (baritone sax/vocals), who fans in New York City and beyond will recognize from their past work together in Turkuaz as well as their performances in a variety of formations at previous editions of Brooklyn Comes Alive. While Schwartz won’t be present for this performance, the band’s first-ever appearance will feature special guest Nate Edgar (The Nth Power) on bass. See below for a complete schedule of performances at Brooklyn Comes Alive 2022.
Festival director Gideon Plotnicki (GMP Live) shares, “It is so rewarding to work with some of our favorite artists to deliver special performances, debut new projects, and create memorable experiences for fans and bands alike at Brooklyn Comes Alive. That we get to do this in one of the country’s best live music venues, in the best city in the world, is a dream come true. Brooklyn, we’re back, and we can’t wait to celebrate with you at the incredible and unique venue, The Brooklyn Mirage.”
Kunj Shah, founder of Live For Live Music and Brooklyn Comes Alive, continues, “As our flagship ‘Comes Alive’ event, Brooklyn Comes Alive represents the idea of limitless possibilities. From eclectic lineups to unique collaborations to special guests to the debut of new projects, the ‘Comes Alive’ events have always been a place where we get to experiment with our wildest music ideas and see them come to life on the big stage.”
“This event is about unifying musicians and stunning fans with their favorite live music greats,” Shah adds. “If you can dream it, you can build it, and if you can build it, they will come.”
General admission tickets for Brooklyn Comes Alive 2022 are available in three tiers, starting at $65 and increasing as tiers sell out. VIP tickets include expedited entry, access to the VIP Mezzanine with perfect sightlines to the stage, and access to VIP bathrooms. Super VIP packages include an additional exclusive, limited-edition merch item. BCA ticketing platform DICE includes all fees and taxes up-front in its listed ticket price to avoid surprises at checkout. To purchase tickets, head to the festival website.
Follow all things Brooklyn Comes Alive on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. RSVP to the Facebook Event page to stay on top of updates and additional announcements about the 2022 event. Get excited for Brooklyn Comes Alive 2022 at The Brooklyn Mirage on Saturday, September 17th with a recap and photo galleries from last year’s event here. Scroll down to check out the full set of official Brooklyn Comes Alive 2022 artist baseball cards.
