Apollo Suns

GRAMPS THE VAMP

Arising from a sweat-drenched Halloween house party debut in 2011, Gramps The Vamp has become equally known for it’s “tight-as-a-rope funk” [My Spilt Milk] as for its dedication to break the funk mold and carve out its own genre. In 2014, a year after being named Best New Band by Chicago Reader on the merits of its demos and live shows, Gramps The Vamp released its self titled debut LP produced Sergio Rios (Orgone, Killion Sound). The album’s vintage-noir style, which the band half-jokingly calls “Doom Funk,” drew the interest of filmmaker Alaric S. Rocha, who used over half of the songs as the soundtrack for his 70s inspired horror film “Demonoid (1971)”. In 2016 the band released its sophomore effort, “The Cave of 10,000 Eyes”, which brings together afrobeat, deep funk, ethiopian-jazz, and spooky soul for a further exploration into the dark, wild, and strange side of the funk.

Founded by Ed Durocher, Apollo Suns is a 9-piece instrumental collective from Winnipeg, Manitoba. The band fuses the influence of jazz, rock and psychedelic music, to create their own unique sounds with the dancefloor in mind. They have self-released three EPs: ‘Each Day a Different Sun’ (2017), ‘Dawn Offerings’ (2019), ‘A Relationship of Force’ (Color Red, 2021), and were awarded “Instrumental Artist of the Year” at Western Canadian Music Awards in both 2018/2020.

In 2022, Apollo Suns returned to the studio with Juno award-winning producer Ben Kaplan (Five Alarm Funk, Mother Mother, The Rare Americans) to record their latest album, ‘Departures’. The band is signed to the Canadian label Do Right Music, home to The Souljazz Orchestra, Soul Motivators, and Luvmenauts.

Developed over many tours trying out different arrangements and grooves, their new single ‘Pluto’ became a fan favourite at live shows due to its heavy horns, dynamic groove, and catchy melody. “Pluto is a many-faced god who is capable of great kindness but also is temperamental. We wanted the song and artwork to convey that feeling to listeners.”

Best known for their high-octane live shows, Apollo Suns have captivated audiences at Winnipeg Jazz Festival, Big Fun Festival, Vermont Jazz Fest, and Calgary Stampede. Some of their most notable shows include support slots for The Comet is Coming, Makaya McCraven, Anomalie, The Brooks, and Five Alarm Funk. The core group includes Ed Durocher (Guitar), Tim Iskierski (Drums), Erika Einarson (Percussion), Bryn Herperger (Bass), Garrett Malenko (Trumpet), Benjamin James Hill (Trombone), Aaron Bartel (Bari Sax) and Anatol Rennie (Keyboards/Synths).

CHARLIE OTTO

Charlie Otto has been a Chicago favorite for 15 years, and he’s just now coming to accept that. The founder of the cult darlings This Must be the Band and DJ noDJ, he’s sold out venues around the United States, and has had the honor of playing alongside many amazingly talented people including some of his musical idols, like Umphrey’s McGee and members of King Crimson and Smashing Pumpkins.

“charlie otto + his gear” is his first solo project, running on the cutting edge of both music and video performance. Almost no one else is spontaneously using their guitar solo to generate what you see on the screen, or turning a knob to both modulate a synth and distort the images in the video. The technology to connect the sound and visuals to this degree is only recently being developed, and with the help of video guru DRMBT, Charlie experiments and pushes this tech forward every show. You’re welcome, future.

The songs are not experiments though, they’re fully developed SONGS. The lyrics and chords are gushing with feeling, the drums are throbbing, the synths are huge, it’s very electronic while still achieving rock and roll status – probably because most of it is controlled by Charlie’s amazing multi-guitar. Although the entire show is danceable, don’t be surprised if there are times you’re glued to where you stand and your jaw stays open. Either way, it’s something that you’ll have to talk about later.