The Groundhog Issue #2 - Chopping Spree!

Party Time

Five guys. One goal. Make people dance.

Chopping Spree! started as a jazz-fusion band in Vancouver, BC, but they have morphed into an uncontrollable monster that spews groove. Their music satisfies the older jazz fans in the back of the room, while 20-year-old punks slam into each other in the mosh pit. The type of concert that you and your parents would enjoy equally.

Skin-tight grooves squeeze you like grandma's hug. Escalating cacophony spins you to a sweat-soaked club in a faraway city. Wherever they take you, it's familiar, even though you've never been. Musical déjà-vu. Chopping Spree has that effect.

Jazz can be hard to define. Sometimes it's a trio cruising through standards in a musty club. Sometimes it's a 5-piece powerhouse shredding from Caravan to Casiopeia to their own originals.

Jazz is a language that allows strangers to communicate with each other, and yet some people try to restrict the genre with a rulebook. Tim Reinert, who runs the Vancouver-based event company Infidels Jazz, pointed out some of the challenges with the genre.

Chopping Spree pays homage to the history of jazz, and can appeal to true jazz heads who understand the lineage of the standards. However, their refreshing take on the genre enables them to bring newcomers up to speed. At the heart of it, they just want to have fun.

Chopping Spree's original compositions carry a sense of freedom from the past, because they are paving their own path.

Origins

Before the formation of Chopping Spree, the only members who properly knew each other were Eddie Naranjo (drums) and Junny Chen (guitar) of Reverend Ape. They met Kyler Young (saxophone) and Hayden Cohen (keyboards) through the UBC Jazz Ensemble. Two different bass players played with Chopping Spree before the addition of Olivier (Oli) Leclerc cemented the lineup. Oli is a graduate of Capilano's music program and is a member of the Vancouver band Felisha and the Jazz Rejects. Adding him to the group had an immediate impact.

Despite their musical commonalities and compatible personalities, it took a month after the new lineup's debut for the group to hit their stride. The friendships they forged during that time helped build trust and chemistry on stage and in the band room.

Colm McIntosh has a unique perspective into the inner workings of the band, since he played drums with the band while Eddie was studying abroad in Spain.

This sort of environment has allowed each musician to expand their potential and contribute in ways they might not have imagined.

However, despite the connection between the five members of the band, they're vocal about the role that other musicians have played in the band's journey.

What Makes Chopping Spree Special

Chemistry and commitment aren't the only pieces of the puzzle. The band draws on energy from the crowd and from each other and sends it back out. Their improvisations are a conversation in real time. They build off each other, take turns running the show, then unify just in time to blast off to another dimension. It's impossible to remain still at a Chopping Spree show, especially when the guys on stage are genuinely having a blast.

You can feel the different personalities of the members come to life on stage. The music has been described as "easily digestible nerd shit" by a friend of the band. The various influences on the music might be incompatible in some cases, but Chopping Spree's approach has managed to make the blend accessible. Their chemistry as a group allows their sound to evolve and it has become truly unique.

The music is meant to be fun for the audience to listen to, but first and foremost it's fun for the band. Most shows feature a fully improvised jam, where the band plays off each other and builds a new song piece by piece.

X-factor

The band is a true democracy without a "frontman" that takes the lead on stage or in the practice room. This means that all five guys are equally involved. They simply play whatever feels right at the moment. Chemistry is a big part of what distinguishes Chopping Spree from other bands. They operate as a single unit, like five fingers working together on a hand. Which leaves me wondering… who is the thumb in Chopping Spree?

Each member brings something different to the table, and the band's collaborative approach to songwriting enables them to extend beyond their individual skillsets. Many bands are mainly driven by one or two people, which sometimes makes it easier to make decisions, but ultimately it narrows the creative vision. Having a five-person unit that operates cohesively is incredibly rare, especially in the world of jazz music.

Whether it's a jazz standard, a song from a Legend of Zelda soundtrack or rap lyrics that Hayden brought into band practice, Chopping Spree's genuine musical camaraderie is a sight to behold.

Community

Chopping Spree's show at Hero's Welcome in October was a sold-out affair. Organized by Infidels Jazz, Chopping Spree played back-to-back sets to a packed house. The event's host, Tim Reinert of Infidels Jazz, introduced them as "one of the premier fusion groups in the country" as they took the stage. The energy was high in the venue and the band delivered. They filled the venue without any support acts, so everyone knew the crowd was there to see them. The excitement in the audience was palpable and familiar faces smiled up at the band.

The audience at Hero's Welcome comprised 20 year-olds from the underground punk/metal scene as well as many older folk from the local jazz scene.

While waiting to enter the venue, I stood in line behind an older couple. I asked if they were parents of the band members. "No, but we're old enough to be," they joked. It turns out that Jeff had seen them at an Infidels Jazz show and has gone to multiple Chopping Spree shows since. And he's not alone. Chopping Spree is developing a multi-generational fanbase as a result of their varied catalogue and infectious energy on stage.

Chopping Spree is gaining recognition on the stage, but also within the community in Vancouver. The band members often make an effort to go support other local acts.

So What?

Chopping Spree has helped open the door to a style of music that previously felt inaccessible to many. There's no need to study the century's worth of material in order to feel qualified enough to attend. They're at the forefront of the Vancouver music scene and they're not doing it alone.

According to Tim, due to Vancouver's isolated geographic position it's even more important to support the growth of the BC music community. Crossing the border is inconvenient and expensive because of the exchange rate, and there aren't any large music scenes to the east that are close. Therefore the Vancouver and Victoria scenes need to find ways to work together.

Bands like Chopping Spree make it easy to support the BC music scene. It's the type of show you can bring your friends and parents to, even if they aren't fans of jazz, or metal. The band has carved out a niche by being true to their creative instincts, and they're just getting started.

Their first single "Crayola" is out now! Listen here: