With special guests, Pocket Change.

"Excellent f*ing music"

-Andre 3000 (Outkast)

"Killin.'"

-Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck)

"Serious passion."

-Johnny Vidacovich (Astral Project, Joe Sample)

"Scary."

-Tony Hall (Dave Matthews, Trey Anastasio)

"Great musicality, great fun, great minds."

-Grammy winner, Al Petteway

*2008 Dallas Observer Music Awards Winner (Best Jazz Act)*

An animal as innovative and engaging as its 3 generations of legendary musicians, Snarky Puppy has one of the freshest sounds in the world of instrumental music today. It is a gathering place for the best that Dallas has to offer, from the unparalleled genius of keyboardist Bernard Wright (Miles Davis, Chaka Khan) to the raw groove and vibrant spirit of Grammy Award-winning drummer/keyboardist Robert “Sput” Searight (Erykah Badu, Snoop Dogg) to the hunger and passion of its young founders. This convergence of different cultures, races, ages, and musical backgrounds has birthed a sound that is setting trends and defying boundaries worldwide.

It is a delicate mixture of real American music, from jazz to funk to R&B to rock, and seasoned heavily with the sounds of Brazil, Puerto Rico, Africa, the Middle East, and the Balkans. While exotic, virtuosic, and laden with musical depth, the success of Snarky Puppy can be largely attributed to the group’s ability to “go in multiple directions while remaining imminently listenable” (Dallas Observer), and ultimately, danceable. Reaching an audience is something that these players have loads of experience with, having played with major league artists such as Sting, Stevie Wonder, Snoop Dogg, Roberta Flack, Morcheeba, Erykah Badu, and countless more. The music is completely uncompromised, unorthodox, and unmistakably unique.

At the forefront of the band are two living legends from different generations. The veteran of the group is keyboardist Bernard Wright, one of the most influential people in the history of American music. After 30 years of touring and recording with folks like Miles Davis, Marcus Miller, The Wynans, Roberta Flack, Roy Hargrove, Gladys Knight, Bernard brings his unequalled maturity, taste, FUNK, and versatility to Snarky Puppy. On the same route though a few generations behind him is the Grammy Award-winning producer and multi-instrumentalist Robert “Sput” Searight of groups as eclectic as Kirk Franklin, Snoop Dogg, Erykah Badu, and Celine Dion. Sput brings an undeniably contagious energy to the music, whether behind the drums or keyboards. Frequent augmentations of the group include Puerto Rican percussionists Jose Aponte and Jorge Ginorio as well as new funk legend Bobby Sparks (Lalah Hathaway, Marcus Miller) on organ.

But the girth of the band is one more generation back, and in sharp cultural contrast with the aforementioned players. It is a group of mid-twenties, college-educated jazz musicians from the highly esteemed University of North Texas. This is where the concept of the group was birthed and is maintained, even throughout a drastic musical evolution that has gone on for 4 years. The young bassist/composer/bandleader Michael League (Myron Butler & Levi, Keite Young, Dave Brubeck, Walter Hawkins) has engineered Snarky Puppy to be a band constantly pushing forward, yet always accepting of what its individual players bring to the table.

Snarky Puppy has shared stages in the U.S. and Canada with Victor Wooten, Rudder, Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, The Chris Tarry Group, and Ari Hoenig among others, proving that its appeal has very few genral boundaries. Its three records and DVD have received acclaim from musicians and critics alike, winning over such artists as Andre 3000 (Outkast), Johnny Vidacovich (John Scofield), and Marcus Miller (Miles Davis).

The group will be touring internationally throughout 2009 supporting its highly-anticipated third record, “Bring Us the Bright”. The album features a horde of special guests including violinist Zach Brock (Stanley Clarke) among others.

As for defining the band’s sound, League says, “In a crazy, twisted way, we play dance music. It’s also art music. I suppose it’s just music.”

Additional info can be found through Snarky Puppy and SITMOM Records.