Fiery Balkan brass, throbbing funk grooves, killer Gypsy accordion, and virtuoso jazz chops make Slavic Soul Party! NYC’s official #1 brass band for Balkan Soul Gypsy Funk. With Mexican, Gypsy, Jewish, and American roots, SSP! makes new music out of the unplanned results of immigration, proximity, and globalization, pumping a strong Balkan brass sound through the filter of life in New York’s outer boroughs.
Led by percussionist and composer Matt Moran SSP! is one of the funkiest, nimblest and hardest working bands in NYC, SSP! averages over 100 shows per year. They have performed with the Karandila Orkestar in Istambul, with Gogol Bordello at Irving Plaza in NYC, on JAZZ-FM in Skopje, Macedonia and for the Warped Tour, where legions of Skate-punks where entranced by SSP!’s massive unamplified sounds and energy.
“Of all the NYC dance bands that draw on Eastern European music, Slavic Soul Party! is the coolest…. SSP! jumps from traditional songs to contemporary covers and originals, connecting the dots of a number of folk schools with surprising finesse… Though all of these elements blend beautifully on the album, SSP! shines brighter as a live band. Its members seem acutely aware of the common principle that unites the traditions they borrow from: Music ought to move you.” — Cristina Black, TimeOut NY
SSP! can be found most Tuesday nights at Barbès where their raucous live sets will transport you to a universe fashioned after a Kusturica movie.