The Most Wanted — 22 March 2023 on Rocket Shop Radio Hour
The Most Wanted joined guest host Nico Zachman on ‘Rocket Shop,’ Big Heavy World’s weekly local Vermont music radio hour on 105.9 FM The Radiator. Catch up with them at instagram.com/themostwanted.band
On Wednesday, March 22, guest host Nico Zackman was joined by The Most Wanted, a Burlington-based five-piece hip hop and free improvisation group combining elements of jazz, rock, and countless other eclectic sounds to create a heady brew of groovy sonic exploration.
The band’s wild expressiveness is united behind verses by Shemar Singleton, rapper, lyricist, and principle vocalist for the group. The rhythm is laid down by Sam Lyons on drums and Evan Barker on bass, while keyboardist Van Garrison explores and extends the groove into billowing, expansive harmonies, topped off by the melodic stylings of Sam Gelpi on saxophone.
One of the songs highlighted in Wednesday’s set was “Green Ginger,” a new composition by Shemar and Van. The tune features enigmatic, syncopated rhythms played in unison by the whole band, accented by percussive flourishes from Sam Lyons and intercut with sections of wild avant-garde free jazz, transitioning into smooth and yearning melodic R&B sections. The smooth, relaxed vocal delivery and abstract, visually expressive lyrics exemplify Shemar’s artistic voice, which spearheads and organizes the free-flowing energy of the group.
The members of the band largely met each other through their involvement in the basement shows and bar gigs of the UVM band scene, where they have collaborated in numerous contexts over the past several years. The Most Wanted was originally envisioned as a free improvisation group, a concept that they understand as being similar yet self-consciously contrasted against the ‘jam band’ sound that permeates Burlington’s music scene. “To my mind free improv is like, you can take it any direction, you kind of just have to listen to each other, and really go for it,” said Van. “When we started we would do a lot of extended jams, and try to invent new chord progressions on the spot, and compose on the spot, which is what improv really is, and the free part of it just means you can take it any direction you want, instead of trying to do the same chord progressions every time.”
In the course of the group’s collective improvisation, songwriting, and composing, a variety of sounds come to the fore. “Van likes Frank Zappa, I like MF Doom… the band is a nice place to come together and come up with creative things — you never heard MF Doom and Frank Zappa on the same album before, but you might with the Most Wanted,” said Shemar.
The Most Wanted have a busy spring ahead of them, with shows including one on April 7 at The Monkey House, April 13 at Radio Bean, and April 20 opening for The Wailers at the Essex Experience Green. For updates on future events, you can find the group on their Instagram https://www.instagram.com/themostwanted.band
Text by Gideon Parker
Monochrome photo by Logan Allen