FUNKATRON

Gainesville may be known for ass-kicking athletics and national championships, but Titletown also has quite a happening music scene. With small venues scattered throughout downtown, night owls can always find the perfect tunes to complement any night. To give you an idea of who to hear, we polled INsite's music experts for some of the must-see bands in town. When you come to a Funkatron show, bring your dancing shoes. If you ain’t moving something, you’re not doing it right. The song to hear is “How Much Ya’ll Chicken?” based on a true story.

By Megan Heron - INsite Magazine

I don’t have enough adjectives to describe what it is I felt when I saw Funkatron in person. I could tell by their music I played on The Scene, that we had a great concert in store for my listeners and I - that turned out to be an understatement. From the moment Funkatron took the stage, they electrified the entire audience and no one could escape their infectious grooves, pouring from the P.A. From start to finish the energy was so intense you could have powered half the globe. Against the audience’s will, the show ended and the performance seemed to linger. I would bet my life that every person who witnessed the glory that is Funkatron that night took a piece of that band home and never let go. The only way to avoid being moved by Funkatron is to not have a soul. If I had to sum up Funkatron in just one word - the word would be spiritual. Not a day has passed that I haven’t had one of Funkatron's songs stuck in my head. I will be proud when they hit it big and I can say I knew them first!

- TA2 (Tattoo Todd- Host, Programmer and Producer of Tattoo Todd's The Scene Radio Show on 95.7 FM WHOG in Daytona Beach)
- Tatto Tod on 95.7

- Funkatron -
Funk for a new millennium. That’s what rockets out of the center of Funkatron’s music. The progressive funk songs crafted by this group deliver knife-edge hooks, groovilicious melodies and a catchy, dance-floor burning flow. Funkatron does more than dole out beats to move your body; this band is about excitement and club frenzy thrills. “Our music is an active experience that includes the listener as a participant,” says Funkatron. “Everyone at a Funkatron show is a part of the music, just as much as the band is.”

- The Dance -
If the music is only there to make hooks for dancing, then only half the picture is in place. Man shall not live by dancing alone. That’s the word Funkatron preaches. The music itself should be a kick you come back to again and again. Even if you’re in your car and nowhere near a club, the music should put the vibes in you and make you want to dance. Think of music not as the battery for dancing bodies but as that which incites a dancing riot. “Music puts us at a higher level of euphoric peace than any other event on this planet,” screams Funkatron.

- Innovation -
Funkatron never stops to relax. There’s too much music to make. The members of this band are always pushing for new ideas, new sparks of originality. Funkatron has staked its reputation on innovation in the world of funk and dance music and innovation never sleeps. “Nearly every band practice, someone brings new ideas to the table, which the rest of the band takes and molds into a sound that eventually comes out as one of our tunes.”

- The Artist at Work -
Funkatron has played the Deland Original Music Festival, HomeGrownRoots 4/20 Festival and with groups such as Perpetual Groove and Afroman. The group hits the stage several times a month, tackling “every major city in Florida.” A fall tour is in the works, with Funkatron aiming to carry its sound up and down the east coast and throughout the southeast. In addition, the band has just completed its first full-length album. That disc is slated to be released in April. Funkatron is currently working with A&R Select, the world’s leading independent artist development firm, based out of Los Angeles, CA as well as FunkaRecords, a brand new Indie label establishing a home in Gainesville, FL. - A&R Select

Our hometown groove machine has finally released its debut album after thrilling audiences for some time with its bumping live shows.

On this eponymous disc, the party is always on while the musicianship remains in fine form. Although this quintet wears its influences on its sleeve, there are times when the borrowed sounds are uncanny. “Dance Hippies Dance” grabs the guitar punch from 311’s Tim Mahoney. Likewise, singer Cooper Nolan cops Anthony Kiedis on “That Funky Girl.” Hogtown MC Pra-Spect lends his rhymes to a couple of tunes here, kicking up the b-boy boullabaise. Musically, there’s almost everything but the kitchen sink here (including steel drums!) – just supply the drinks and the crowd and you’re on your way."

- Fred Sowder, September 2008 - The Satelite Magazine