SoCo Social Presents Mylo, Big Sam’s Funky Nation @ Tribeca, 06/02/09

According to the blurb on the back of the flyer, SoCo Social is a series of events that showcases legendary talent in intimate venues, providing feel-good parties to start off the weekend. As the night progressed, it became clear how true this was.

The legendary talent came in the form of Big Sam’s Funky Nation, a five-piece funk/jazz band hailing from New Orleans, and quite possibly trapped in the 1950s. Their set was as diverse as it was energetic, playing a mix of original material and covers including a 12-minute version of Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy’. Big Sam himself brilliantly took charge of proceedings throughout the set, alternating between trombone and vocal duties, and even managing to work up the crowd in between.

Following the precedent set by Big Sam’s Funky Nation, and seemingly setting out with the similar aim of getting people to dance, Mylo proved his passion for defying genres by seamlessly blending techno and electropop with indie and r’n’b. Although there were highlights, including floor-filler ‘Freeform Five’, the rest of the set proved to be fairly generic, with the superstar DJ repeating many tracks and poorly mixing others. Towards the end of the night the gradually thinning crowd reflected the declining quality of the music.

Rating: 3 stars