The Band
Polka, Gipsy and Disco – these terms should be enough to describe what PALKOMUSKI is all about. And something else holds true too: this is about making really good music. Because PALKOMUSKI, as the quintet calls itself, have been performing at hip and happening venues across Switzerland for the past two years. They are for real. These five musicians are entirely devoted to the music of the East, remixing just these musical traditions with a vengeance. PALKOMUSKI’s musical carpet is made up of folklore from the Balkans, Hungary and even Russia. But if you think that the material is handled in a rigorous and conservative way, you are in for a surprise.
Not only is Polka danced and performed, but influences of musical soul mates such as Tom Waits or Paolo Conte are also incorporated in a playful and virtuoso manner, which makes for a deliberately eclectic process. Style is meant to be broken – and juggling styles is part of PALKOMUSKI’s underlying musical credo. No wonder then that live performances have their special place. PALKOMUSKI are all too willing to act like a dance group and perform in the classic environment of women, wine and song. In fact, the performance of these five musicians resembles an ecstatic-euphoric spectacle, which immediately spreads and captures the audience to make them part of the show. Delirium is given free rein altogether. During every show the band goes wild as if it were their last night. While performing, the troupe of dancers moves through emotional states ranging from serenity to melancholy and meanders between trash, vodka and other states of intoxication towards an unknown ending.
There are no limits to this quintet’s playing, and this freedom is owed to the fact that its members have been musical companions for a long time. Matthias Honegger on bass and clarinet, drummer Dominic Damonte, keyboarder Baptiste Beleffi and Luca Ramella, strumming the ukulele for once, had been playing for years as members of the HipHop combo Vizioso, while the latter two also joined jazz musicians Harald Haerter and Erik Truffaz in their Haerter-Truffaz Unit. Besides, Luca Ramella has made a name for himself as drummer for bands such as Lauschangriff, Waldorf or Adrian Weyermann. Last but not least, Mario Scarton with his virtuoso style of playing provides the timbres of the accordion that are so characteristic and unique for the music from the East.
LINE UP
Baptiste Beleffi – Keys, Vocals
Matthias Honegger – Bass, Clarinet
Mario Scarton – Accordion
Dominic Damonte – Drums
Luca Ramella – Ukulele, Percussion
