RABECA "POTLUCK" REVIEW — Melodic Noise

Remember the quaint ol’ days of quarantinis and toilet paper shortage? Seems like so long ago. I find myself wanting to transport back to that time in order to be able to properly assess the debut album “Potluck” from the local food and jazz enthusiasts, Rabeca. The album came out just one day before the Minnesota shelter-in-place order went into effect. The world feels like an entirely different place since then. Many of our lives have changed in ways we couldn’t have imagined. However, I also need to remind myself that there’s always a place for music and great food. So, even though our potlucks are now socially distanced, I’m going to follow Rabeca’s instructions from their Bandcamp page and pull up a seat and grab a bite because no one likes Rabeca when she’s hangry.
Taking a page from the book of MF DOOM’s classic album “Mm..Food”, Potluck’s tracklist is entirely made up of food related song titles. It wouldn’t be a complete stretch to refer to Potluck as a concept album, an albeit incredibly loose concept due to the fact that the vast majority of the album is instrumental. The instrumentals found throughout the album take us on many musical journeys that lead to some unexpected, but at times beautiful places. The songs themselves range from freeform to highly constructed, many times within the same song. There’s a lot being offered here and there are so many flavors to be had; I can see why they called it Potluck.
Like so many great meals, the album opens with “Butter”. The track starts with a tight saxophone riff doubled by guitar. A far more loose drum groove follows shortly thereafter. It’s a nice contrast with some of the frantic guitar work. At right around the two-minute mark, Rabeca tastefully does away with the established riffs and grooves and falls into a freeform section that confidently walks the very thin line between sections of delicate beauty and tension.
That brings us to the aptly titled “Detective Sprout”. Starting out as a relaxed yet mysterious affair, fitting of an old detective story, it quickly transforms into an incredibly groovy number thanks in no small part to the dexterous drum beat switch up. Shortly after, we find ourselves back into a very relaxed, laid back feel to bring us in for a gentle landing.
The track title “A Lot Of Things Are Edible If You Only Eat One” certainly helps me with my word count, but also offers some insight into Rabeca’s members’ clear sense of humor. It’s difficult to convey humor through purely instrumental music, but a little bit of time spent on Rabeca’s Bandcamp page makes their sense of humor quite apparent. Much like the music, the title sounds like the product of friends hanging out, smoking a joint and shooting the shit and then someone says something that cracks the whole room up and someone else exclaims that it would make a great song title.
With a slinking groove, “Tortilla Moon” may be the most outwardly funky offering of this generous potluck. But as we’ve established as a norm for this record, the track is not content to linger or overstay its welcome in any one place. At about the halfway mark, the band allows for a languid moment before slowly building back into a busied, driving section before winding back down again into a slow fadeout. I will say that despite all these changes in mood and texture so far on the record, Rabeca handles them with a lot of care and nothing feels unnecessarily disjointed. Everything seems to be falling into place very nicely.
Probably the most immediate and hunger inducing track on the album is “Sautéed Mushrooms/Deviled Eggs”. It’s an exemplar of what the band does well. The main groove is funky, mysterious, and above all catchy. When it reaches the quiet moment we seem to be offered on almost every track so far, it feels different this time. It feels pensive like moments on previous tracks, but far more tranquil and stunningly gorgeous. The mood we come back to after our calm departure is a nice mix of the initial vibe and the serenity of the “calm” part which leads to a syncopated ascending riff that brings us to a fantastically abrupt and halted stop.
The only song with vocals you will find on this album is “Apple Of My Cheek”. By no means is it a bad song, but because of this fact, it does leave the album feeling slightly disjointed. It almost comes as a shock to hear a voice at this point in the journey. That being said, as a standalone track it is still effective and probably comes the closest in the tracklist to maintaining a consistent energy, that is until the next track which, for me holds that honor.
A nice loungey piece comes in the form of “In Another Spice Time”. Clocking in as the shortest track on the album, it has a satisfying mix of jazz and blues with a swinging pace. As far as instrumental tracks on this album, it breaks the mold in that it doesn’t strip away the instrumentation down to a very gentle quietness at any moment. It does ebb and flow a bit of course, as any good composition will, but I think this record needed a song that accomplished that.
Next is the album’s longest cut and closer “Truffle Shuffle”. We’re provided with some ethereal chorused-out guitar work that gives the song a DIY indie rock feel that hasn’t shown up until this point. But I wouldn’t say the song as a whole is a total change of pace or out of step with the rest of the record. The band choose to end on a relatively chill number that falls in line with the laid-back vibe of the rest of the record.
Overall, Potluck is a very strong, consistent showing from a relatively new band, and a very solid statement for a debut. I hadn’t heard of Rabeca before this, but I can say that I dig what they do and I think with a bit of refinement in production and songwriting, a legitimately classic album is somewhere down the pipeline for them. When it comes down to it, much like the title and subject matter allude to, this album is the perfect soundtrack for cooking. It opens up a world of possibilities of flavors and textures and leaves me feeling inspired to make something adventurous and delicious, much like Rabeca has done with Potluck.

Rabeca:
Colleen Cowie (she/her): guitar
Anna Dolde (she/her): saxophone
Satchel Bruna (he/him): drums
Alex Rack: keyboard
David Munkvold: bass

(Melodic Noise) How's your day going?
(Rabeca - S) it's going alright!
(Rabeca - D) fairly well, thanks for having us!

(MN) What is your formed/origin story?
(R - C) In early 2019, Alex, David, and Satchel were all living in the same house. Their house would host cabarets from time to time, where friends would come to perform music, comedy, etc. Alex asked me if I wanted to perform at the house’s cabaret in January of that year, so I called up Anna (who I met and became friends with through Macalester’s jazz band) and asked her if she wanted to perform together. We both wanted to play at the cabaret, but thought it would be more fun to play with a full band — but at the time, we didn’t really know any bassists or drummers. So I told this to Alex and he was like, “No problem! My housemates David and Satchel play bass and drums — they can be in your band!” So Anna, David, Satchel and I formed Rabeca and wrote two songs that we played at the cabaret (“Butter” and “In Another Spicetime”). I originally thought the band would only last for that one performance, but we all had a blast performing at the cabaret and decided to keep playing together — and add Alex as on keys!

(MN) Genre?
(R) Jazz/pop fusion (currently it’s a lot of “food jazz” as we call it haha) but we like to experiment with different genres

(MN) Label?
(R - S) We recorded Potluck at Busker Shanties Studio in North Minneapolis. Our friend Holden Bothun owns and runs the place, so we just all set up on the first Sunday in August '19 that worked best for each of us and recorded throughout that afternoon.
(R - C) After recording with Holden, we released Potluck independently- you can find it on Bandcamp and Spotify!

(MN) What was the inspiration behind the album?
(R - A) I think we were all inspired by the joy that we feel playing and improvising as a group and trying to capture that joy in the music we make. We wanted to make music that made others feel just as good listening to it as we feel playing it. We found that that kind of joy is described really well by a potluck- people gathering and sharing food and time with each other, just like we gather and share time and energy with each other. Potlucks are great :)

(MN) What do you hope people take away from the album?
(R - D) There’s a real playful and creative attitude present throughout the album and we really want people to catch some inspiration from listening. Whether that’s moving your body or getting excited about an idea or feeling an emotion really intensely. We’re hoping to breathe some energy into the world.

(MN) What did you learn about yourselves as you were making this project?
(R - S) In the studio, you're making something that can only be reproduced without seeing the artist create it right in the moment, so my focus was on how to reproduce the live show sound and experience in that detached medium of wherever and whenever the listener may be. Drumming wise, I don't have to sit and chat about chord structure so I felt my duty was to focus more on consistency than anything else. I had to lean a bit more into that "studio musician" mode while balancing the true to form feeling of "well, we'll just sort of hear and play off each other and it'll go great as long as you just don't stop listening!"
(R - C) Most of our songs include a fair bit of improvisation, and a lot of the time when we rehearse we play a couple completely improvised jams. Something that I’m working towards as a musician (and as a person!) is to let go of control and take more risks, even if that may lead to me making “mistakes.” When I first started playing with Rabeca I was super timid about adding my own parts to jams, because I was afraid of playing “wrong” notes, but now I’m having a lot more fun by taking away some of that pressure.

(MN) Are you locals or transplants?
(R - S) I'm a transplant twice over. This is my third year in Minneapolis, having spent my first 7 in California and a subsequent 15 in Ames, IA.
(R - A) I am originally from Seattle, WA and have lived in Minnesota for 6 years- I came for college and have stayed since.
(R - C) I’m from Washington, D.C. but I moved to the Twin Cities in 2014 to go to Macalester College, and have stayed since then.
(R - D) transplant! From Ames Iowa and then spent four years in St. Paul before moving to Minneapolis in 2017.

(MN) What are some of your influences and Minnesota influences?
(R - S) I'm first a Bonham disciple from my early years. Bill Kreutzmann, Al Jackson Jr, and Elvin Jones are all over how I approach jazz more specifically. Michael Cavanaugh has also been a big focus for me in recent years.
(R - A) I come from a jazz background, so I am deeply inspired by Kenny Garrett, Ornette Coleman, Christian Scott, Ambrose Akinmusire. But I also am inspired by alternative artists like Neko Case, St Vincent, Crumb, and also by many different genres of music.
(R - D) I’m really influenced by rap and rnb as well as experimental electronic music. Some of my most listened to include Shlomo, shigeto, swarvy, freddie Gibbs, earl sweatshirt to name a few. Recently I have been really getting into London based contemporary jazz musicians like Henry Wu, yussef dayes, and Alfa mist. As far as Minnesota influences include psymun, dua saleh, and seeing friends perform (back when that was a thing).

(MN) Who are some of your favorite current Twin Cities artists?
(R - S) Alien Book Club, Mr. Submissive, La Curandera and the Ritual, Rachel Bearinger, CommandPrompt
(R - A) Dad Bod, Dua Saleh, Floodwater Angel, Gully Boys, k.raydio
(R - C) VIAL, bugsy, Allergen, Gully Boys
(R - D) 26bats! Dua saleh, psymun, corbin

(MN) What is your favorite venue to play and see shows in the Twin Cities?
(R - S) There's something special in the various house show settings we've played, be it a living room, garage, basement or backyard, that you can't get anywhere else.
(R - A) I think we all have an affinity for the Kitty Cat Klub- it’s just a fun, laid-back atmosphere.

(MN) What can fans expect when they come to your shows?
(R - A) We wanna make you move/dance if you feel it!
(R - D) moving their meat sacks and deep emotional reflection
(R - S) Bangers!

(MN) Do you have a favorite or interesting memory of playing a show?
(R - S) We played a Halloween show in a friend's basement last year and we worked up Britney's "Toxic" as one of our special Halloween tunes. Hearing everyone in various states of mind crowded in the room shouting along is a fun memory. I only remember so much more...
(R - A) We also have this song we played for that Halloween show called “The Blob” from the 1920s that we haven’t been able to stop playing since- it is so much fun and we are all dancing around the whole time. Everytime we play it I am so happy.

(MN) Other hobbies?
(R - S) I'm also a folkie who writes love songs in my bedroom, I bike around town to get places, and tend to my avocado plant, Melquiades.
(R - D) painting, going for bike rides, gardening, growing mushrooms
(R - C) Baking, knitting, teaching myself to sew

(MN) What do you like about living in the Twin Cities?
(R - S) I appreciate how it's fairly easy to get around without a car, the multi-cultural exposure, appreciation and solidarity within the community and the incredible and pristine silent mornings after a big ol' snow storm.

(MN) Is there anything that sets the Twin Cities scene apart from places you've toured?
(R - A) I think the Minneapolis scene is really open and accepting of new bands in a way that I haven’t experienced other places. I think it’s also super easy to meet other bands and build a bill of eclectic music in the area.

(MN) What are your favorite places to grab food or drink in the Twin Cities?
(R - S) Sammy's Eatery on Broadway is an incredible black-owned sandwich shop that I've loved the past couple years since moving to the cities. Banana Blossom is another gem of the Northside close to my house that has the biggest veggie spring rolls I've ever seen. I should note that for drinks, Liquor Lyle's in Uptown had dangerously tantalizing deals…
(R - D) i absolutely love getting Ethiopian and Somali cuisine. Staying away from bars for now but I did enjoy going to breweries.

(MN) What are the band's plans for the future?
(R - S) Tour our adoring fanbase in Portugal & Brazil!
(R - A) Working on a new album/release in 2021 and experimenting with new genres/song structures
(R - D) during the cold months we’re planning to focus on composing new music and exploring new ideas for collaboration!

(MN) Who did your album art and how did you choose it?
(R - D) I drew the album art and I was essentially capturing some semi-representative/subconscious associations with potlucks and the juxtaposition of chaos and harmony when everyone brings a little something to share.

(MN) What's your favorite part about the recording process?
(R - S) For me, it's once everything is set up, organized, and you've overcome the "permanence anxiety." That's what I'd call the recording pocket!

(MN) What do you miss most about live shows?
(R - S) Tearing down, setting up, hanging around and being exposed to other artists is what I miss socially about live shows. Musically, It's hitting the point between 5 people of musical comfort in front of an audience. Anytime we are able to surprise and hopefully lose ourselves in an extended jam- finding cool little paths out and unexpected little paths in is really where I feel the most serotonin-release.
(R - A) The energy of playing for other people!

(MN) Is there anyone you want to shout out or thank?
(R - S) Shoutout to Tony Stevens, my drum teacher back in Iowa, and the Wiitches!
(R - A) Thanks to my friends who come out to all the Rabeca shows- love y’all :)
(R - C) Shoutout to my parents for buying me my first guitar and for supporting my musical growth
(R - D) thanks to all my friends and family that have come to shows and the other folks of Rabeca for making this such a fun experience!

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Review by: Eric Addams, Writer

Interview and edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner @PlaylistTC