WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Here’s an excerpt of a recent review by Steve Bornfeld of Vegas Seven Magazine:

“Call it big-band music for people who think Duke Ellington married the Duchess of York and Count Basie was the brother-in-law of Dracula.

“Or call it David Perrico and the Pop Evolution.

“Far from echoing your grandfather’s, father’s or even your older cousin’s big-band music, Perrico and his 18-piece outfit stylishly contemporize the genre so it’s accessible to “the kids” while never sacrificing musical integrity — i.e., the codgers will dig it.

“Peripatetic trumpeter-about-town — his band performs regularly locally — the cap-wearing Perrico produces a warm sound with crisp articulation that skips nimbly atop the grooves laid down by a hard- charging ensemble peppered with Strip musicians (and fellow big-band maestro Lon Bronson). Fronted by formidable singer/songwriter Naomi Mauro — whose power pipes and sexy stage presence are a potent combo — this band swings, rocks and rips through a 90-minute set of originals and covers. An animated bandleader, Perrico adds visual zing to the aural pleasures, using body English — a jabbing finger here, a sudden arm swoop there — to underscore a cymbal splash or blast of brass.

“... Thankfully, in a town infamous for erasing nearly everything it was raised on, this remnant of our history — freshened and energized by musicians like these — can still explode, rather than implode.”