The Right Now brings soul to the Mill
"You Will Know (feat. Jason Brooks)"
Soul is known as an emotional style of music. And the Right Now is a band with plenty of soul to give to the audience.
“Soul, funk, liveliness, energy — all of these things describe [the group’s] live show,” Cedar Rapids resident Cat Wolfe said.
Chicago-based the Right Now will perform at the Mill, 120 E. Burlington St., at 9 p.m. today. Admission will be $7. KRUI 89.7 FM will broadcast a preshow interview with the band at 5 p.m.
Members of the group include Stefanie Berecz on vocals, Brendan O’Connell on keyboards, guitar, and vocals, Chris Corsale also on guitar and vocals, Greg Nergaard on bass, John Smillie on drums, Jonathon Edwards on baritone and alto sax, and Jim Schram on tenor sax.
Ryan Sibert, from Cedar Rapids, said he’s seen the band at least a half dozen times.
“It’s a band that provides quality, soulful music,” Sibert said. “The lead female singer is drop-dead gorgeous and has the pipes to really throw down. It’s like a really good soul and review band from the ’70s.”
The Right Now released its second album, Carry Me Home, in March, and it will play some of the tunes at the show. O’Connell said it took a year to get the record done.
“It was a really long process,” he said. “We have the eight-piece band and then backup singers, a string section, gospel choir, and all kinds of keyboards, so it was a huge learning experience.”
O’Connell writes most of the music and lyrics, and he collaborates with Berecz on some of the vocals. The band will then arrange the songs, with the horn-section members writing their parts.
Though the group has played some big festivals and clubs (including a recent stop at Chicago’s Metronome Celebration), O’Connell said he prefers to perform at smaller clubs.
“It’s a little easier to connect with the audience when you play at a place such as the Mill,” he said. “The Mill specifically is such a storied stage, and it’s always fun to go there.”
Along with the music from Carry Me Home, the Right Now will play some other new songs as well as tracks from its previous album.
Wolfe has followed the band for years and loves the emotion in its shows.
“Stefanie’s voice really just puts me at ease,” Wolfe said. “The first time I saw them, I felt like I was on the East Coast. Being back on a heavy jazz scene with a lot of undertones like funk and soul, and I really just like that, because I haven’t heard a band like that around here before.”
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