Seal Party

Did some good arise from the quarantine? Maybe. For session musicians Chris McGrew and Kevin Seal, formerly of GRIDDLE, found themselves with free reign of the studio. Not just any studio — Wally’s HydeOut at Hyde Street Studios, aka the old Wally Heider Studios, where artists ranging from the Dead Kennedys to the Grateful Dead to Herbie Hancock recorded some of their most legendary sides.

This gift of time let them build a dream scenario. “Let’s bring our long-simmering songs to a boil, and invite our friends to add their spices.” Soon, world-class horn players, violinists, organists, and singers were arriving, squirting hand sanitizer onto their mitts, and throwing their best ideas into the mix.

The resulting MMXXII is a continuous, 44-minute piece that is eclectic and beautiful. Inspirations range from Bobby Womack to David Byrne to Airto Moreira. Syncopations bounce off of thick, extended chords and propulsive basslines. Decades of studio magic seep into the tracks, like the casks flavoring the scotch. Real musicians put their hands on real instruments, and eschewed auto-tune and beat correction. They breathed human imperfections into their takes. Stepping from the chilly isolation of social distancing into the warmth of face-to-face playing was a blast of joy, and a reminder of what got them all playing their instruments in the first place.

https://linktr.ee/sealparty

HOSTED BY

KEVIN SEAL & CHRIS MCGREW