Glide Magazine -
"Tastes of The Flaming Lips, Santana, Fela Kuti, Tame Impala and The Arcade Fire break through atop this soulful collection of songs that are birthed with unlimited potential."
Grateful Web -
"They have, crafted a cohesive album that blurs the lines between genres and eludes classification, resulting in a sound and experience that appeals to a wide variety of audiences."
Blurt Magazine -
A perfect 5 stars!!!
Elektric Voodoo’s World Beat Rock and Roll is comprised of layered sounds, intriguing, disparate musical genres and timely, inspiring lyrics. Songwriter and guitarist Scott Tournet may be at the helm of this six-piece Southern California band, but each member’s contribution is unmistakably essential to the whole. Joining Tournet is Matt Bozzone (drums/percussion, vocals), Ty Kiernan (congas, timbales, percussion), Travis Klein (tenor sax, keyboards, guitar, percussion, vocals), Brad Nash (baritone sax, keyboards, percussion,vocals), and Luke Henning (vocals, bass). Each player is immersed in a particular discipline; jazz, classical, latin, indie, reggae, world, New Orleans music culture and other global influences which fuse perfectly into what Tournet refers to as an “imperfectly perfect human band."
Togetherness is often lost in the technology used to create music,” says Tournet. “And musical togetherness is where it’s at. With all our imperfections, we come together and create a feel that you can’t make on a laptop. Everyone in the band brings a unique set of skills and a lifetime of dedication to their respective instruments. We are a dance band. We are upbeat. I think what makes us different is that we are trying to combine the physicality of rhythm with the emotions of meaningful lyrics and storytelling, so we connect to the body and the mind of our audience. We want our crowds to dance and sweat through Saturday night and then wake up remembering a lyric that helps carry them through the week.”
“Some people open their mouth, sound like an angel, and go on American Idol. I am the antithesis of that process. It was a hard task to “find my voice” because I really need about five or six people to actually flesh out the sound that was in my head,” Scott Tournet.
“I didn’t start playing music until I was eighteen, “confesses Elektric Voodoo songwriter, Scott Tournet. “I was supposed to be attending college classes, but I locked myself away in a dorm room with a guitar, loop pedals and a four-track recorder.” As Tournet’s musical “college education” continued, he learned to layer his creations. “That is how my songwriting style evolved. That’s how I connected the dots.”
Scott’s successful career paths before forming Elektric Voodoo includes writing, performing and recording with Dan Auerbach (The Black Keys), The Allman Brothers, Billy Gibbons, Robert Plant, Willie Nelson, Taj Mahal, Mark Batson (Dr. Dre, Alicia Keys, etc),, Mavis Staples, Kenny Chesney, The Black Crowes, Bob Weir, and many more. Through these experiences Tournet became schooled in song craft, soul, pop, blues, and classic rock & roll at the highest level
To Tournet, his sound required human beings interacting, not technology and mechanics. Tournet may be the impetus in Elektric Voodoo, but the magic, the alchemy, comes from the interplay of highly trained musical humans putting flesh on Tournet’s rhythmic bones.
“New Orleans musician Dr John influenced me in a powerful way,” Tournet continues. “There were rock, blues, and Latin sounds all stewing together like a big gumbo when he performed. His sound was reliant on other players. It was laced with Jazz, Cajun and voodoo ritual and psychedelic seasonings.”
“So when our band came together with our disparate influences, the name Elektric Voodoo was a nod to Dr John and his unique skill of combining disparate genres into a singular and original voice.”
A rhythmic foundation is the building base for Elektric Voodoo’s music and makes live performance a danceable union of band and audience. When Tournet first started writing he would, “…pick up weird percussion stuff and old instruments at yard sales. With the rhythm backbone in place, Tournet turns “subversive” (one of his favorite words). “From there I begin with a melody or bass line,” he says. “I want people to dance. Add keyboards, find the bridge and then, subversively…,” he laughs. “we add guitar as a sort of afterthought...I focus the least on the instrument I play the most.”
“I love programs like Cosmos and One Strange Rock. Those shows shoot me out into space and make me look at the Earth from a fresh perspective. They remind me that it’s an absolute miracle that we are alive and have made it this far as a human race. It also makes me see the planet as one place that we all share together as opposed to a bunch of disparate countries and nations. I like my lyrics to provide a sense of wonder, hope, and inclusivity. Shows like Mad Men inspire me because of the grayness of humanity. The characters are not all purely good or purely bad. They are in between because we are in between. The best songs I’ve written are personal but can also feel personal to the listener. When I was learning to write I was listening to Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Lucinda Williams and Wilco. I’m continuing to dip my toe into the spiritual search, while still being enjoyable and uplifting…”
“(Our show) is like tapping into the best versions of ourselves and transferring that to an audience.”
What is an Elektric Voodoo live show about? “Less navel gazing …more dancing!” laughs Tournet. “We recently had an experience performing one of our originals at the Joshua Tree Music Festival where we broke the last verse on our song LOW to just drums and vocals. “Maybe one day we’ll forget about race and let go of all of this hate”. The crowd lit up and cheered and I knew they needed to hear that as much as I needed to write it.” It’s amazing to me that something you create in relative isolation can illicit such a powerful response in humans. It’s like tapping into the best versions of ourselves and transferring that to an audience.”
“It brings us such joy to shine a light on the good in the world through music. To bring hope and joy and affect personal change is encouraging and makes us want to continue…”
Tournet turns quiet, “And you know, that’s a sort of subversion…with positive intent!”
As for the other band members background:
Collage - noun -
1. from the French: coller, (“to glue”) is a technique of art production where the artwork is made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole
2. A combination or collection of various things
3. Elektric Voodoo.
Matt Bozzone
Drums / Vocals
Matt Bozzone has been playing drums for over 20 years and has focused a lot of his time studying, collecting, and performing music originating from West Africa, Brazil, Jamaica, Colombia, Cuba, and African American culture. Since 2010, Matt's been based in San Diego and has enjoyed performing locally and touring throughout the U.S. with different bands, playing a wide variety of styles including afrobeat, funk, reggae, hip hop, cumbia, samba, gospel, and even rockabilly.
Tyrone Kiernan
Congas / Timbales / Percussion
Tyrone Kiernan, a San Diego native, has encircled himself for years with local Afro-Cuban musicians and is blessed to have studied with some of San Diego’s finest Congueros. Along with funk and Afrobeat, he also brings in the sacred rhythms of Santeria (folkloric, orisha worship music). Thus, literally injecting micro elements of Voodoo (a commonly misunderstood religion in the West) into Elektric Voodoo’s music. “In recent years I’ve come to the strong conclusion that the most important aspect of my playing is to bring an original sound and approach to the table; a Taoist philosophy of learning and forgetting, which feeds and engenders one’s own creativity. Elektric Voodoo has been the perfect outlet for this to flourish.”
Bradley Nash
Baritone Sax / Keyboards / Percussion / Vocals
Bradley Nash has always been diving head first into every musical opportunity he can. His formal classical training in saxophone, bassoon, clarinet, and flute, as well as his experience playing with rock, R&B, jazz, and world music groups have given Brad a unique voice as a performer and educator. He strives to be an eternal student to the never-ending and always changing world of music.
Travis Klein
Tenor Sax / Keyboards / Guitar / Percussion / Vocals
Travis Klein started playing saxophone at the age of 8 under the tutelage of his father Robbie Klein and later Ray DeFade where he developed an ear for jazz and improvisation. In college he studied music theory at West Virginia University with Michael Ibrahim and developed a deep understanding and passion for classical music, chamber music and modern music, all the while feeding his curiosity of the inner workings of music through studying guitar, piano, brass, woodwind, and string instruments.
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Luke Henning
Bass / Vocals
Luke Henning came up playing bass in the San Diego pop punk and ska scene during his teens with the band Bucket of Fish. During college he got deep into James Jamerson and Carol Kaye and began widening his professional musical horizons as a freelance musician playing with acts like Rally Club, Temper Tangents, Lootbox and others. Though his background is mostly in playing with indie pop artists he is a student of Motown at heart.”