Back on February 18, Soul Low stepped on stage at the Helene Zelazo Center For The Performing Arts to play a show unlike any the band had ever played before. Joined by an all-star cast of Milwaukee string and brass accompanists, one of the city’s most active, upbeat, and electrifying acts treated an audience gathered in the UW-Milwaukee facility to a rare “unplugged” concert, which was sponsored and broadcast by WMSE.
Those who didn’t tune in or who weren’t in attendance missed out on a truly special evening that found Soul Low treating listeners to an unprecedented set. Now, those who missed that fabled February performance have an opportunity to hear Soul Low expanded, rearranged, and unplugged. The digital release is available to be streamed or purchased as a pay-what-you-want download on Soul Low’s Bandcamp. All proceeds from paid download will go directly to support WMSE. The eight songs run the gamut of the constantly writing band’s extensive catalog, including an absolutely restructured rendition of “Spooky Times,” an emotional version of “Wake Up Pains,” and yet-unreleased songs that will be—in much different forms, of course—on Soul Low’s forthcoming full-length, Nosebleeds, in August.
With evolved and full variations of songs the band members wrote in their teens, along with impressive arrangements that were applied to new material, Unplugged shows how far Soul Low has come, hints at the exciting things on the horizon, and serves to celebrate the tremendous things the band is doing as we speak. Stream the live album below or download it on Bandcamp. You can see Soul Low play an amplified show May 28 at Mad Planet as part of Gloss Weekend.