Galactic on Conan

GALACTIC will embark on an extensive, six-week North American trek next month in support of the quintet’s recently-released and widely-heralded Anti- debut From The Corner To The Block. The New Orleans-based frontrunners of futuristic funk will launch the tour in Flagstaff, Arizona on October 11th and wrap the far-reaching initiative with a coveted performance on NBC’s “Late Night With Conan O’Brien” on November 19th.

Joined by The Coup’s Boots Riley and special guests Lifesavas on all dates, Jurassic 5’s Chali 2na will also be featured with GALACTIC through to October 27th. Mr. Lif will then jump on the tour as special guest along with Riley and Lifesavas October 31 - November 18. Counting these esteemed artists and more, From The Corner To The Block merges GALACTIC’s renowned funk fusion with an array of today’s most innovative hip-hop MC’s including Lyrics Born, Gift of Gab of Blackalicious, Lateef the Truthspeaker, Digable Planets’ Ladybug Mecca and multi-platinum rapper Juvenile.

Weighty praise has been abundant, with The New York Daily News calling From The Corner To The Block “the most exciting hip-hop album of the year. It’s the hottest rock-rap fusion since peak Beastie Boys.” Elsewhere, The Fader, The Village Voice, Relix, Playboy, CMJ, Vibe, AllHipHop.com, Harp, Daily Variety and Rolling Stone have all championed the disc.

Esquire hit the nail on the head, insisting, “On what seems like the first true post-post Katrina record, home grown instrumental funkateers GALACTIC have found a way to celebrate New Orleans by forging forward without looking back at the disaster”.

Meanwhile, acclaim from Filter was equally apropos: “GALACTIC is too hot for New Orleans. This digitized voodoo funk makes the Meters look like the goddamned glee club, and y’all know the Neville Brothers ain’t never gotten Juvenille and Chali 2na to collaborate on the same record. Shit, these electric bayou grooves got the pain peelin’ off the walls a’ my kitchen, and my woman done lost her shirt and gone shakin’ in the streets. You best bring in the fire squad – Louisiana’s burning.”

The respected MC’s that contributed to From The Corner To The Block were asked to approach their lyrics with one uniform concept: Corners. Stemming from the idea that GALACTIC’s hometown is full of evocative street names inspired by history, mythology and multiple ethnicities, guest artists were asked to think of an intersection that was important to them.
Just as every corner is an intersection of two paths – for instance New Orleans’ own “Law and Desire” or “Martin Luther King and Oretha Castle Haley” – the disc is a meeting of two different styles of music.

After sharing stages with giant M.C.s like The Roots, Talib Kweli, and Jurassic 5, said collaborations seeded the uplifting, thought-stirring and undisputedly natural merger of GALACTIC’s electrified funk and hip-hop’s insightful lyricism on From The Corner To The Block. Resetting expectations of what GALACTIC can be, bassist Robert Mercurio, guitarist Jeff Raines, keyboardist Richard Vogel, drummer Stanton Moore and saxophonist and project co-producer Ben Ellman, married two types of New Orleans street music with remarkable finesse.

Old school Brass Band second line grooves meet bounce style inspired hip-hop on the title track for which GALACTIC enlisted native superstar Juvenile – with whom the band previously performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live – and the up and coming Soul Rebels Brass Band. On the track “Second & Dryadres” the band called on Mardi Gras Indian Big Chief Monk Boudreaux whose chants blend seamlessly with the bands electro funk sound thanks to Ben Ellman’s innovative production.

GALACTIC’S FALL 2007 TOUR

* - denotes dates with BOOTS RILEY, LIFESAVAS
** - denotes dates with BOOTS RILEY, CHALI 2NA and LIFESAVAS
++ - denotes dates with BOOTS RILEY, MR. LIF and LIFESAVAS


Thursday October 11 Flagstaff Orpheum Theatre**
Friday October 12 Los Angeles House of Blues**
Saturday October 13 San Francisco Fillmore**
Sunday October 14 Stateline, NV Mont Bleu Resort**
Monday October 15 Ashland, OR Armory**
Wednesday October 17 Bellingham, WA Nightlight**
Thursday October 18 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom**
Friday October 19 Seattle, WA Showbox**
Saturday October 20 Eugene, OR McDonald Theatre**
Monday October 22 Ft Collins, CO Aggie Theatre**
Wednesday October 24 Dallas, TX House of Blues**
Thursday October 25 Houston, TX Meridian**
Friday October 26 New Orleans, LA Voodoo Music Festival**
Saturday October 27 New Orleans, LA Tipitina's*
Wednesday October 31 Austin, TX Stubb's ++
Thursday November 01 Baton Rouge, LA Varsity Theatre ++
Friday November 02 Athens, GA Georgia Theatre ++
Saturday November 03 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse ++
Sunday November 04 Charleston, SC Music Farm ++
Tuesday November 06 Raleigh, NC Lincloln Theatre ++
Wednesday November 07 Charlotte, NC Visulite Theatre ++
Thursday November 08 Asheville, NC Orange Peel ++
Friday November 09 Richmond, VA Toad's Place ++
Saturday November 10 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls ++
Wednesday November 14 Washington, DC 9:30 Club ++
Thursday November 15 Baltimore, MD 8x10 ++
Friday November 16 Philadelphia, PA The Fillmore at the TLA ++
Saturday November 17 NYC Roseland Ballroom ++
Sunday November 18 Boston, MA Paradise ++