Galactic’s So Climactic | Galactic Live Review w/ Monophonics | The Plaza Live Orlando | January 28 2015

by Sean Dorsett • February 10, 2015

Everyone present at the Plaza Live was invited to take a rocket ride through the cosmos with the ever-glorious Galactic and their extraordinary wingmen, Monophonics! And, whoa, that was quite the journey for a Wednesday night!

Monophonics wasted no time in blasting off this sonic voyage with some funky, soulful, hard-hitting grooves. I’m sure I had heard of this band before but had never gotten around to hearing or seeing them for some reason. I discovered quickly that I had been missing out.

This gem from San Francisco is one that will likely have you moving all of your limbs within the first few seconds. There’s something truly captivating about those wah-wah guitar riffs, groovy bass lines, punchy drums, and that bright, powerful brass section. And, as if that clout weren’t enough already, the passionate lead vocals and smokin’ key licks of frontman Kelly Finnigan really puts the finishing shine on everything.

That whole set was golden; a perfect lead into Galactic. I’m really glad I got to the show early. My friend and I were especially floored by the last song of Monophonics’ set, which was a shockingly energetic rendition of “Bang Bang” by Sonny and Cher. Fortunately, the Sober Goat was in the house to preserve this piece of fleeting awesomeness for the ages. I hope you can appreciate it as much as we did!

After that hot performance, it didn’t take long at all for Galactic to charge up the hyperdrive and resume command of the mothership. Drummer Stanton Moore immediately set a course for deeper space and hammered out some driving rhythms that called the whole crew to action. It was apparent in short time that our mission was to reach a higher dimension of the rocking, New Orleans funk-jazz continuum. Special guest Erica Falls even joined in on the climb and indeed sent us to astronomical heights with her graceful, yet dominating, vocals.

galactic live review erica falls

Her singing actually gave me hair-raising chills from the neck down. Last year, when Galactic came through Orlando, they featured another female singer (Maggie Koerner) who was beyond exceptional as well. But, I have to say, Erica Falls one-upped her for this tour.

I could closely see all of the passion radiating from this beautiful woman as she strutted confidently across the stage like a grooving diva queen. There was something strong and fiery about her voice even though it flowed out smooth as melted butter.

Though she added a wonderful dynamic to the band, they could all easily hold their own as an instrumental act just the same. In between performances with Falls’ vocals, Galactic jammed out some killer songs with some remarkable improvisation thrown in for good measure. Most memorably for me: they played a song that sounded like something that would fit in the soundtrack of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Imagine Oompa Loompas playing crazed gypsy circus music while dancing and parading on elephants. It sounded kind of like that. This gave rise to some interesting dance moves in the crowd too.

I had way more fun than I was expecting. I will definitely be catching both of these bands when they come around next time. 🙂

Galactic Live Review by Sean Dorsett.
Galactic Live Concert Photos by Lindsay Tompkins.