Saturday January 22, 2011, at 8:30, $5. In concert, WPBE (The Worst Pop Band Ever) — “The Worst Pop Band Ever sets out to twist and bend both jazz originals and pop covers, straddling genres and butting heads with expectation.” “The music’s fresh, may appeal to pop lovers but assuredly to jazzers keen on a kind of driven fluency as genre stylings are examined, discarded and reworked.” (Toronto Star )
The band features native Hamiltonian Chris Gale on sax and vocals, Mohawk instructor Adrean Farrugia on piano and synth, plus Torontonians Drew Birston on bass and vocals, and Tim Shia on drums. www.myspace.com/wpbe www.wpbe.bandcamp.com www.sonicbids.com/theworstpopbandever (EPK)
“Blending disparate influences, mixing sax and turntables, acoustic bass and synths, the Worst Pop Band Ever (WPBE) sounds like the ugly love child of Radiohead, J-Dilla and Miles Davis. With regular airplay on CBC and Jazz FM, the band’s latest ablum, “Dost Thou Believeth in Science” reached as high as #28 on Earshot, the Canadian College Radio Music Charts and #1 on CIUT FM. The bands members include Juno winners and nominees who have played with everyone from Feist to Blue Rodeo to the Shuffle Demons.”
“The Worst Pop Band Ever’s title displays a sense of humor and frivolity, but in name only€¦. Street wise yet substantive, these compositions would appeal to fans of Vijay Iyer, Brad Mehldau, or DJ Logic…From start to finish Dost Thou Believeth in Science? is hip enough and deep enough for jazzers and non-jazzers alike.” (All About Jazz.Com)
