Grateful Brass reimagines the iconic music of the Grateful Dead with an instrumentation of brass, drums and vocals (no guitar!). The music digs deep into the Grateful Dead discography with creative re-imaginations infused with the ebullient spirit of New Orleans Second Line, trance-like grooves of Afrobeat, brass-driven energy of Balkan music, and energetic Afro-Cuban polyrhythms, all sitting on top of a heavy foundation of funk.
This debut 4 song release offers a snapshot at what this group has been carefully developing over the past 2 years with this ambitious project. Focusing on their instrumental arrangements the EP journeys through Jazz, Global rhythms, Funk, Classical and of course that New Orleans Brass Band magic. Arrangements on this group of songs are contributed from sax player Tommy Occhiuto, Tuba/vocalist Jonathan Seiberlich and by producer Adam Theis who’s also been a member of Grateful Dead founder Bob Weir’s current band.
