Joe Russo (JRAD, Selcouth Quartet) interviewed by WPKN's Bill Cosentino (Organic Radio)

WPKN Music, Arts, and Culture Podcast

WPKN's Bill Cosentino speaks with Joe Russo about his musical history leading up to and including Joe Russo's Almost Dead (JRAD), as well as his latest project with Selcouth Quartet. They sonically explore some of the improvisational scapes this talented group of musicians have created in Iceland and bring to the area as they kick off their tour in support of this album. Russo's tour is starts in CT on 3/6 at Ridgefield Playhouse returning to CT on Sunday, 3/9 at Infinity Hall in Hartford with Russo's jazz project, Selcouth Quartet.

Selcouth Quartet is a dynamic ensemble featuring Joe Russo (drums, keys), Stuart Bogie (saxophone, flute, clarinet, keys), Jon Shaw (upright & electric basses), and Jonathan Goldberger (acoustic & electric guitars). Their self-titled debut album, recorded at Floki Studios in Iceland with producer and engineer D James Goodwin, is a mesmerizing exploration of a range of styles and moods. Born of creative immersion in a remote and otherworldly environment, their sound seamlessly drifts between hauntingly beautiful melodies, propulsive improvisation, expansive atmospheres, and towering sonic constructs.

Joe Russo Bio:

Joe Russo is an American drummer and half of the Benevento/Russo Duo. He has toured, performed and recorded with a number of other bands, including Cass McCombs, Robert Walter’s 20th Congress, Bustle In Your Hedgerow, American Babies, the Trey Anastasio/ Mike Gordon duo, the Gene Ween Band, and Furthur (featuring Phil Lesh and Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead). Russo’s drumming is fierce and complex (he has been nicknamed “The Madness” by fans). Russo has twice won the New Groove award at the Jammys, in 2000 and 2005. In the summer of 2006 he was the drummer in a collaboration with Trey Anastasio, Mike Gordon, and Marco Benevento (sometimes referred to as GRAB or Mike & the Italians). In December 2008, Russo joined Ween front man Gene Ween and fellow Bustle in your hedgerow band mates Scott Metzger and Dave Dreiwitz for a short east coast tour with an outfit called the Gene Ween Band. On this tour, Joe played his “house kit,” which notably includes a rare 30-inch bass drum purchased off of eBay. In Fall 2009, Russo joined Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Jay Lane, Jeff Chimenti and John Kadlecik (from Dark Star Orchestra) to form the band Furthur. Jay Lane left Furthur in March 2010 to rejoin Primus, and Russo continued to tour with the band as their sole drummer until they disbanded in November 2014 but has been touring with Joe Russo's Almost Dead and other projects.