This weekend, on Saturday and Sunday, Brooklyn Comes Alive will take over three Williamsburg venues within a five-minute walking radius—Brooklyn Bowl, Schimanski, and Music Hall of Williamsburg—with a bevy of unique supergroups, tribute sets, and one-time-only jam sessions. The unique homegrown two-day event puts the focus on the musicians, curating dream collaborations and tribute groups and bringing to life artists’ passion projects with its hand-selected lineup featuring over 100 beloved musicians who have been carefully arranged into 35+ unique sets.
We’re particularly excited about Octave Cat—an electronic side project featuring Lotus bassist Jesse Miller, Dopapod keyboardist Eli Winderman, and drummer Charlie Patierno—who will kick off Sunday’s festivities at Music Hall of Williamsburg with their set running from 4 to 5:30 pm (EST). Known for their infectious grooves, the fusion trio started after Miller and Winderman realized they shared a mutual appreciation for vintage keyboards and analog synths. The project is a product of serendipity—the two Philly area musicians first got together in May of last year, and, after finding a drummer to compliment the project perfectly, accidentally started the trio.
New Lotus/Dopapod Collaboration Octave Cat Debuts Two Funky Tracks [Premiere]
As Miller recalls, “I put various keyboards in front of Eli to play and kept a recording running as we went. Riffs and melodies from that session became the basis of both ‘Limber Up’ and ‘Spar.’ We had not planned on starting a new project, but the music seemed too good to leave to languish on a hard drive.” After explaining that Patierno is a perfect drummer for Octave Cat because he “captured a great groove and interesting sounds in his home studio,” Miller emphasizes, “With no intention, we had started a new trio.”
Since Octave Cat’s inception in summer of 2016, the group has sporadically been making and releasing new music. After debuting the project during at Summer Dance last year, the group has also picked up occasional shows when its members’ busy schedules allow, with Octave Cat embarking on their first-ever mini-tour back in March of this year. You can catch a rare live performance from Octave Cat this Sunday, September 24th, from 4 to 5:30 pm at Music Hall of Williamsburg for the return of the annual Brooklyn Comes Alive!
[Photo: Mike Ryan]
Inspired by the vibrant musical communities of Brooklyn and New Orleans, Brooklyn Comes Alive is set to take place across three venues in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (Brooklyn Bowl, Schimanski, Music Hall of Williamsburg) on September 23rd and 24th. The unique homegrown event puts the focus on the musicians, curating dream team collaborations, tributes, and artist passion projects for two full days of incredible music both new and old.
The 2017 lineup is set to include hand-selected band lineups featuring all-star musicians like John Scofield, George Porter Jr. (The Meters), Vinnie Amico and Al Schnier (moe.), Bernard Purdie, Joel Cummins, Ryan Stasik, and Kris Myers (Umphrey’s McGee), Aron Magner and Marc Brownstein (The Disco Biscuits), Mike Greenfield and Jesse Miller (Lotus), Jason Hann (String Cheese Incident), Alan Evans (Soulive), Cyril Neville (Neville Brothers), Henry Butler, Reed Mathis (Electric Beethoven), Michael League, Nate Werth, Chris Bullock, Robert “Sput” Searight, and Bob Lanzetti (Snarky Puppy), Jennifer Hartswick and Natalie Cressman (Trey Anastasio Band), and scores of others!
***Tickets Are On Sale Now!***
To find out more about ticketing, VIP options, and lodging, head to the festival website.
