Smoke Benders
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The Smoke Benders, formed in late 2010 in Tokyo, features Samm Bennett on vocal, diddley bow, electric drum, talking drum, jaw harps, etc.,and Naoya Numa on drums.The band was first formed as a trio, with tuba player Daysuke Takaoka, who has since left the band. Samm and Naoya are continuing the project as a duo, with an eye toward once again working as a trio when the right third member comes along!
Their music is rollicking, propulsive, funky and very spontaneous. Samm and Naoya share a deep kind of musical ESP makes their performances tight, fun, and rocking. At the drop of a hat and on the turn of a dime, they are liable to shift into higher or lower gear, as the mood requires, or from one rhythm feel to another
Naoya's deft percussion work, on a unique, compact drum kit of his own devising, provides a super-steady and cooking groove, as well as crisp percussive color, and the rhythmic dialog with Samm is right in the pocket.
Samm's diddley bow work (usually in the form of some simple opening riff) or one of his "electric drum" patterns or his jaw harp plucking often creates the spark from which the band takes off on their excursions into one groove or another: maybe a New Orleans second line vibe, or a Bo Diddley beat, maybe some funk or a jump blues, an easy shuffle or a driving boogie... anything's possible. Then, once things have established themselves, Samm will pull out one of the hundreds of songs in his songbook and refit it to match the groove and character of the moment. Any number of his original tunes get reinterpreted in wholly new arrangements every time the Smoke Benders take the stage. It's something new from the old, every time. For, although the Smoke Benders are very much a song band, they don't rehearse. Ever. For them, spontaneity is key to keeping the music fresh and unpredictable, and they're not especially interested in performing songs in the same way over and over.
It's a freshness and spontaneity and a sense of joy in music making that audiences feel at once, and the very vocal, party-like crowd responses can be heard on several of the live performance videos you'll see from the band. The Smoke Benders are having a hell of a lot of fun, and the audience is right there with that. A good time all around!
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Smoke Benders videos (trios, from 2010 to 2012)
Smoke Benders duo (Samm and Daysuke) videos : Page 1 -- Page 2
Smoke Benders duo (Samm and Naoya) videos : Page 1
Smoke Benders duo (Samm and Naoya) videos : Page 1
