Bennett Matteo Band
By Mike O’Cull
The Bennett Matteo Band puts forth a transcendent blast of dirtfunk and desert soul on its new album Shake the Roots on Gulf Coast Records.
Available now, the set is a genre-crossing, game-changing stick of roots music dynamite created by improvising and experimenting with the elements of American traditions and taking them in a fresh direction. Essentially a duo made up of vocalist Jade Bennett and guitarist Gino Matteo, The Bennett Matteo Band has grown its own sound by eliminating all restrictions and recording the outcomes.
The album was co-produced by multi-Blues Music Award nominee Kid Andersen and Matteo at Andersen’s famed Greaseland Studio in San Jose, California. The lineup of musicians on these sessions is beyond impressive and features Jade Bennett (lead vocals),Gino Matteo and Kid Andersen (guitars), Michael Burnham (bass), Carson Ford (drums), Jim Pugh and Kid Andersen (keyboards), Nic Clark (harmonica), and Dmar (percussion) with backing vocals by Lisa Leuschner Andersen, The Sons of the Soul Revivers, and Kid Andersen. With these high-caliber players together in one room, Jade and Gino’s songs and creative essence are both given license to fly.
Jade Bennett and Gino Matteo are a married couple as well as band mates who first met in 2010 on a gig. Gino sat in with Jade and their chemistry was powerful and immediate. Gino was touring extensively then with Sugaray Rayford, a spot he kept for many years, but continued to write with Jade and perform with her when he could. As time marched on, the pair decided to go rogue, get off the grid, and do this thing on their own terms. This independent streak runs through everything Jade and Gina do and their authenticity and pretension-free approach are sublime and refreshing.
“Doesn’t Really Matter”
The Bennett Matteo Band schools listeners from the start, opening the record with the funk/rock of “Doesn’t Really Matter.” Bennett’s voice is bold and expressive, displaying a natural freedom and unselfconscious manner that’s truly beautiful. The band digs into the tune’s sweet mid-speed pocket and rises up for the chorus hook. Of course, the guitar work crackles, snaps, and screams. It’s an arresting cut that will stop you dead when you encounter it in the wild.
The minor key “Shiny Creatures” picks up the pace and sounds like what 10,000 Maniacs might have been if they’d had a bit more bar band backbone. Bennett and Matteo bring the same kind of direct emotion as the Maniacs did back in the day but put a lot more kick behind it. Bennett’s presence on the vocal mic is mesmerizing and her tone, delivery, and grace reel you in more and more with each successive line. You’ll be hypnotized before you realize. Beneath her, the band punches and burns.
The Bennett Mateo Band dials it down a little for the soul-soaked ballad “Believe In Me.” The softer side of Jade’s vocal talent is just as cool as her belt and she puts this one down with quiet style. It would be easy to over-sing in such a spacious arrangement but Jade keeps her focus on the song and on imparting something real to each person listening to it. The track is a skin-tight ensemble performance created by all the players involved thinking about the same thing at the same time.
“Warm Inside” gets back to a more classic rock sound that lets Jade channel a Stevie Nicks influence into a heavier song. Matteo’s guitar work is ripping and vital, employing tone and melody in intense ways. Other highlights of this entertaining ten-song set include “Paid & Broke” and “Table For Two.”
The Bennett Matteo Band isn’t your standard blues, funk, or soul outfit and that’s what makes Shake The Roots such a great record released by Gulf Coast Records. It’s about true expression, not fitting some industry suit, and its commitment to being itself will keep you listening to it for a long time.
The Bennett Matteo Band website
They are like no one else, their lyrics are superb, their melodies are heartfelt.