Goodfellas

In a city jonesing for high quality, fun loving, local live music there comes a band ready to give Prague a fix of the good stuff that´s so very hard to find. Goodfellas are a five man acoustic power group with a musical style so fresh and unique that it´s almost impossible to define what it is that makes it so special.

I sat down for a beer with their guitarist/songwriter Theo Gonzales and Jamie the bassist, to try to get some answers on what drives their music and to learn about where they´ve been and where they are going next.

“Our music is a mixture of rock, hip hop, surf music, folk and blues,” says Gonzales. “We´ve gotten inspiration from a lot of different musicians, from Jack Johnson, Incubus, John Butler Trio, The Red Hot Chili Peppers.”

Such a mixture of incredibly diverse styles of music would seemingly create a sound that might be confused or lacking in direction, but Goodfellas bring it together in their own style that is exciting, lively and soulful.

The raw energy comes from two hard strumming acoustic guitars, a percussionist loudly drilling a bongo to a perfect rhythm, and a funky bass player backing them up. They make a perfect chorus of sounds to give their singer inspiration to cut loose his powerful voice, which mixes passionate singing with intermittent fast rapping. It´s the ultimate good time, let your worries go, and enjoy yourself kind of music.

Needless to say the eclectic style appeals to a wide range of musical fans.

“It´s fun to look into the crowd at our shows and see a pretty young girl next to a 40-year-old heavy metal guy and a hip hop kid all enjoying the music together,” says Jamie. “That´s when we know that we´re reaching as many different kinds of people as we´d like.”

The group originates from Karlovy Vary, where they began playing together in the summer of 2007. Originally they jammed together at parks and bars before getting serious and bringing their act to Prague.

In just two years they´ve gone from a few young guys playing together casually to a professional group that has just released its second album and is ready to embark on a two month, 33 city tour of the Czech Republic. And while big things seem to be on the horizon for them, they still remain humble.

“It´s been hard, working and trying to get money together for posters, money to make the CD and to travel around and play shows for free,” says Jamie. “But the tough times have helped us grow together as a group. Now that the tour is finally here, it´s time to start having some fun.”

Goodfellas will have their CD release party on October 5th at Palác Akropolis in Žižkov and it promises to be an exciting show.

“Akropolis is our home club in Prague. So there should be lots of our friends and fans there to see us,” says Gonzales. “We´re also having a big bus full of our friends from Karlovy Vary come in for the show. It should be a huge, all night party!”

Joining the band will be their tour partners Model Bazaar from Brno, singer Tereza Nekudová, and for good measure a musician jamming on the didgeridoo.