Mucca Pazza - Be Here Now!

It’s a Mucca Pazza party, and it’s about time! After stirring up immeasurable quantities of awesome in the neighborhood for two decades, Mucca Pazza returns to the Logan Square Auditorium. This historic location is apropos; the auditorium hosted Mucca Pazza for many New Year’s Eve parties in years past.

Join in as we sing, stomp and cheer together on this evening of revelry. Supporting Mucca Pazza is Bifunkal and the Drew Delneky Band, plus special entertainment that we are excited to announce.

The theme? Be Here Now! Connect and engage like an OG, not through a device. Look at eyes and instruments, not screens and image sensors. This is the ethos of Reset, which worked in collaboration with ISP Chicago to bring this party to life.

What to expect:

• Full-on entertainment that flies from sublime to absurd, and all stops in between
• Projection art and interactive installations
• A very special guest - soon to be announced
• Device-free connectivity (the human kind)
• Themed beverages and bites
• Smiles (guaranteed) and Hugs (if that’s you’re thing)

MUCCA PAZZA:

Mucca Pazza assembled itself in a steel mill parking lot along the Chicago River in 2004. Combining marching band traditions and street theater spectacle with rock and roll sensibilities, Mucca Pazza quickly found a home for its 30-odd members in the thriving Chicago underground music scene. An unparalleled eccentric, frenetic visual presence and genre-bending original compositions earned Mucca Pazza critical praise and a loyal local following.

A fearless ability to play anywhere opened up absurd opportunities in libraries, reflection ponds and escalators. Tours of North America have brought the band to half of the states and one province. Major festivals include: Lollapalooza, Lincoln Center’s Out of Doors, Festival International de Louisiane and the Montreal Jazz Festival. Preceded by the reputation of its live show, Mucca Pazza hit the airwaves and interwebs, appearing on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, WNYC, NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert while licensing music to TV’s Weeds, I Love Dick and the Golden Globe® award-winning Transparent. They’ve been busy collaborators, working with a range of artists including Chicago Sinfonietta.

BIFUNKAL:

Bifunkal is an utterly unique duo that features a drummer who simultaneously sings the bass, a guitarist who plays rhythm and lead in real-time, and two singers. Expect compositions that defy genre, but smell like something familiar; odd-meters that still have a groove, melodies with hooks, and two guys who couldn’t work with anyone else so they became the whole band. While a duo in essence, the band often supplements its live shows with all manner of instrumentalists and vocalists. From Roy McGrath on saxophone to Honeycomb on beatbox.

Bifunkal was formed in Chicago over a decade ago, and has released two full-length albums and two EPs. On their most recent release, Tetra, Bifunkal went big and reimagined material from their catalog in the context of an orchestra. As it has moved about the U.S., the band has shared bills with Pairs Monster, Elephant Wrecking Ball, Knower, Mike Dillon, Knower, Woody Goss band, Ike Reilly, and Sir the Baptist.

DREW DELNEKY:

Drew Delneky, a Chicago native, is a songwriter, music educator and performer. He holds a Bachelor’s in Musical Theatre from Columbia College Chicago and is currently completing his Master’s in Secondary Education from Grand Canyon University. His vocal training began at the age of 6, under the direction of Daniel Kane and longtime Vaudeville performer Lori Rocklin.

Early in his career he landed lead roles in Les Misérables and Bye Bye Birdie, as well as numerous vocal performances in the style of crooning. He is well versed in vocals, guitar, piano, and bass guitar. Drew has trained and performed with musical artists such as Buddy Guy, Koko Taylor, and Shirley King. Over the span of his performance career, Drew has been a founding member of numerous musical ensembles, including The Prime, Yeh Boi, Blackjack Kings, Funk Vendetta, Bluewater Kings and Feelgood. He has recorded albums with Gravity Studios, Waterdog Studios, Ultra Records, as well as solo projects with Information Playback Reel.

Notable performances include venues such as The House of Blues, North Coast Music Festival, United Center, Wrigley Field, and Game of Thrones Traveling Choir. Throughout numerous appearances spanning across the U.S. Drew has opened for bands such as St. Lucia, Dr. John, Shaun Martin, Spare Parts and many more. He is currently one of five lead singers for the band Affinity with production company Aragon Artists.

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