Schedule
Saturday, August 8 at 8:00 pm (Main Stage)
Jazz legend Miles Davis was born May 26, 1926. He’s shining brightly from the cosmos now but if he was still blowing magic into his trumpet, he’d be 100 years old. The cats in Lettuce started landing on Earth some 50 years after Miles was born, but as musicians with jazz proclivities, it’s no surprise that the groundbreaking trumpet genius served as an influence on the band’s funked up fusion of jazz, rock, soul and mind-blowing sonic excursions. Lettuce – Adam Deitch, drums and percussion, Eric Bloom, trumpet, Adam Smirnoff, guitar, Nigel Hall, keys, Erick Coomes, bass, and Ryan Ziodis, saxophone – has gone as far as releasing a live set, 2017’s Witches Stew, a remarkable tribute to Miles’ Bitches Brew. The re-imagining of Bitches Brew is not only an ambitious endeavor, but beautifully executed. The vibe is mysterious and electric. Once can imagine the taciturn Mr. Davis cracking a wee grin upon hearing Lettuce’s take on his visionary recording.
Lettuce will use its headlining slot to lean into Miles’ work, an outing that we wager will be one of the most talked-about sets of this year’s festival.
This restlessly creative band also has a new release, Cook, and it does, in fact, cook. Since the band’s inception in the mid 1990s, their sound has deepened into far more than just another funky fusion band. They go deep and show no fear when it comes to venturing into new territory (like Miles). “This record is a little more three-dimensional than our past albums,” Adam Deitch says. “It shows a lot more sides to the band, exploring further depths of production and arrangements.”
Whether paying homage to musical influences or embracing new challenges, when Lettuce asks to “Let us play,” the answer from us will always be a resounding, “Yes!”
