otis cd release party: sullivan hall

Photos by beIMAGED Photography were taken on February 26th at the band OTiS' colorful, funky, and entertaining CD release party, held at Sullivan Hall in NYC.

For words on the new album, jump to the other beBLOGGED entry: OTiS CD Review

the situation: otis album review

For a lack of a better work-station, my car can tend to become my writing haven. And while sitting in the warmth of my vehicle on a cold winter's night, with the self-titled OTiS album coming to life through my speakers, I am transported into a world of funky grooves.

The Brooklyn, NY based funk and soul band begins their to-be-released CD with the song "All Over Again", which supplies a full dose of groove and starts the music off right. Put into a blender of delight, this song showcases the group's ability to create a nice mixture of fast-pace vocals with poignant and up-beat instrumentals.

The next track that is more than an honorable mention is "Colorado", which satiates itself in Spanish-inspired beats, with more subdued vocals than is typical for the lead singer, Craig. He takes it down an octave two for this song, and it works: perhaps better than any of the other songs on the disk. With a simple beat, and interesting lyrics, this song seems to have the most story to it. Many of the other OTiS songs are filled with message, hope, and concept, whereas this one stands out to tell us a story about a girl in Colorado. The keys help to make this my favorite tune, with a sound and tone reminiscent to those of the famous "Dancin' in the Moonlight", and in fact, the song itself supplies a vision of a summer night with the moon looming over you and the illuminated person, who you want to better understand, sitting by your side.

This favorite song of mine flows well into the second half of the album, which I prefer over the first half. With a high level of emotion in track 6, "Reconstruction", I am reminded of one of my favorite bands, The Thievery Corporation (in a good way). Onto track 9, "Die Easy", we are taken back to a slowed down tempo. This one is the most haunting, feeling its way through your system with its blues club good vibrations. This is the song that I, personally, cannot wait to see performed live, if not only for the way that it manages to kick you back into the past, into the days where it felt good to sway back and forth to existential thinking in the form of song.

The cover art, designed by Olivia Magnotta, is a big proponent of the album that is worth mentioning, with its ability to fully capture the playfullness, funk, and color of the band. Like "Colorado", it works more than just a little bit.

While this is certainly not a Hollywood-ized band, these guys certainly make due with what they've got. And what they've got is a fast-ripping singer and guitarist, and an instrumental band filled with buckets of talent on drums, bass, percussion, and keys.

The CD Release Party is on February 26th, at Sullivan Hall of NYC, the night starting off at 7:30 pm with Ben Ruttenberg. The tickets are cheap, the music is good, the band is fun: get there at 7:30 or 8, and maybe I will buy you a drink.

otis and the other halloween

In a world where Halloween falling on a Saturday night equals two Halloweens for all - you have to wonder where our priorities are. Yes, indeed, we love to dress up, listen to music, and have an excuse to party all night long. Enter my Friday night on October 30th in seeing the ever-so-fun NYC based band, OTiS. The Mercury Lounge was decked with unique costumes, booze guzzlers, bopping heads, and shaking hips, and luckily enough, I was there to capture it.

Everyone was hopped up on Paul Simon showing up to the funky venue, standing in the corner early in the night with his Indiana Jones hat in place, in support of his son's very talented band who opened for OTiS. Needless to say, the band could feel the pressure of having to perform in front of the man who said he was "still crazy after all these years" back in the day. Despite any anxiety that may have been brewing, however, the buzz simply added to their fire and energy. They were calm and collected before the show in what I have deemed "the pipe room", the green room of sorts, filled with graffitted pipes, in the basement of The Lounge. And then, once on stage, they got almost every single audience member up off their feet, moving and grooving.

OTiS, a down-to-earth, very easy-going band with a stage presence that even makes the lead singer, Craig, scream into the microphone "Hell Yeah". The music of this band is funk, soul, groove, and everything in between, with no level of excitement left out. At one point a young girl behind me in the audience, said it best to her friend: "I don't even care which song is next. I feel it all."
















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