KC Roberts & the Live Revolution

“When it comes to serving up funk in this part of the world, they’re the best candidates for the job.” - Exclaim!

"...Finally, the stars of the evening, KC Roberts and the Raw Blue were a sock rocking experience - a force to be reckoned with. The first thirty seconds of their opening song already showcased the bands enormous talent – needless to say the remaining 40 minutes allowed the band to rip it up and have a blast doing it. On top of putting together an evening of fantastic music, KC Roberts’ simply rocks. Just over a year ago, he decided to bring onboard the Raw Blue – which just may be what is needed to propel his music into rightful stardom. What is mind boggling about this group of musicians is how perfectfly they compliment one another, while each person is able to maintain a very strong stage presence and seduce the audience. Together, the band has developed a sound that will likey withstand fads which change at the drop of a hat because their music is strong enough to stand on its own. If time and space allowed, each musician in the KC Roberts and the Raw Blue would absolutely deserve their own mention to describe their impact on the evening’s success. KC Roberts decision to bring together a collective of musicians that are passionate and excited for one another’s music – makes their vibe astounding and urges fans to get on the KC Roberts and the Raw Blue’s train.

Toronto Funk Hip Hop Rock n’ Roll not only was a ‘bumping’ evening of amazing music. Honourable mentions go out to Matt York and KC Roberts and the Raw Blue –two missing links (among others) needed to rejuvenate the sometimes lack luster Toronto music scene, has been found." - L.A. Splash Magazine

Overall Grade: 89/100

Finally! A female on stage (I was getting sick of the blatant boys-only lineup) And, what's this I hear? Something other than the standard indie-rock fare? KC Roberts performed his catchy, hook-laden funk by sashaying his way across the stage. You wanted to be up there with them.

We were all reeling from their infectious groove and ecstasy-esque energy. Their spirited auras refreshed the crowd. Boom-chicka-boom-boom-boom.

Thank goodness the music made this group sexy, because unfortunately, there wasn't anything particularly eye catching about them. Blue jeans and opened shirts were the standard, and background vox wore clunky high-heeled shoes from 1995. But I gotta give them props for their ability to work a crowd into a frenzy. - Chart Attack.com

I can't remember how I first heard of KC Roberts And The Live Revolution, but from the moment I first saw them I was blown away by their self-proclaimed "Parkdale funk."

Roberts and crew combining groovy jazz, soul, horns and a fierce rhythm section on The Pillage Of Bloor West Village to create another daring, dashing album that embraces the best of funk and rock 'n' roll. This record took over a year to create, which won't come as a surprise to anyone able to recognize the intricacies of the layers and rhythms in each song.

Roberts' vocal talents shine brightest on songs such as "Kiss Me Goodnight." He shares harmonies with the soulful Dionne Wilson on tracks "Too Late," the striking 10-minute, 31-second "The Road To Dar Es Salaam" and slower R&B jam "Hop For The Hip."

The time, passion and heart that went into this record is undeniable and will blow your mind whether you peruse Toronto's Parkdale or Vancouver's Granville.

http://www.chartattack.com/reviews/74633/kc-roberts-and-the-live-revolution-parkdale-funk-1-the-pillage-of-bloor-west-village - Chartattack.com

Saturday, September 14th marked the date of KC Roberts and the Live Revolution’s third Funk Resistance party at the Annex Wreckroom. They played an exhaustive double set of funk tunes to promote their new, crowdsourced album “Parkdale Funk 2: Sides.”

I said it when I covered their set during CMW this year and I’ll say it again: KCLR is easily the tightest live band in the city and their rhythm section possibly the most technical I’ve ever seen. Ever. While everyone in the band had the chance at one point or another to shred their instrument to pieces – trading tasteful solos left and right – there was a sense of humility and respect between the members. No solo felt self-indulgent and no member tried to steal the show. There is a binding camaraderie between these fine folks and it translates beautifully into their music. Missing them on stage is one of the biggest disservices you can do to yourself if you are a music fan in the GTA. - Ride the Tempo

KC Roberts and the Live Revolution
Parkdale Funk 1
By Matt Bauer

Toronto, ON-based septet KC Roberts and the Live Revolution throw down some wickedly contagious grooves on their debut offering, Parkdale Funk 1. They charge right onto the dance floor with the electric one-two punch of "Far Away" and "The Pillage of Bloor West Village," two vibrant slices of up-tempo, acid-jazz-tinged funk fuelled by truly smoking J.B.'s- and Tower of Power-inspired horn charts, some sick guitar soloing and colourful keyboard touches, with Roberts' clean vocals on top, often recalling the effortless cool of the Average White Band's Alan Gorrie. The band dig even deeper into the funk with the seriously on point attack of "Too Late," the best track of the set. There are smatterings of Afrobeat, drum & bass, hip-hop and folk influences throughout, and although it's not an entirely seamless blend, everything gels on "The Road To Dar Es Salaam," a ten-minute-plus drum & bass meets Afrobeat excursion that builds from a minimalist trance-like groove into a fully fleshed out piece of intoxicating exotica. If one needed proof of the vitality and authenticity of new Canadian funk music, they need look no further than Parkdale Funk 1.

You've developed quite a following with your live shows. How much of the energy and vibe of your shows have you tried to capture on the album?
Lead vocalist and guitarist KC Roberts: The approach that I was taking was that I wanted to write songs that sound good with these musicians. I wanted to capture the whole energy of the band. Even in the mastering process, we had to pull it back a bit because we wanted the live feel. I wanted to hear the way my drummer hits that snare differently every time. I think a lot of the tracks on the album capture that more than others, like "The Road To Dar Es Salaam," in which the saxophone solo was dropped in one take. That was pretty magic.

Could you tell me what the inspiration was behind that song?
I went to Kenya and it was my first time outside North America ? huge culture shock. We got on this bus and started driving from Mombasa, Kenya to Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania. It was a 12-hour ride and most of it was on this dirt road; it was the roughest road and impossible to sleep. I think I was sitting there feeling so far away from home. The song itself represents the entire journey. (Independent) - Exclaim Magazine

This seven-piece funk band brings all of its jazz, hip hop, electronic, and rock influences to the table in a soulful, infectious cloud of fun. On Thursday at the festival, it had the largest, most enthusiastic crowd by far. What was telling is that there were lots of folks there who were intimate with the band’s original material, dancing and singing along. These guys are poised to take off, big time. Check them out at the fest and pick up their recently released crowdfunded double CD. - Torontoist.com

TORONTO - You’ve got to credit KC Roberts & The Live Revolution for unleashing a double album on the world when so few people are buying CDs and most listeners have short attention spans.

Adventurous bunch that they are, the ace seven-man funk army recognized that they had to come correct with the goods.

And did they ever! Parkdale Funk 2: SIDES, their just-released third album, is one of the most cohesive, musically satisfying double-albums I’ve heard in ages.

Unlike most 2-CD sets – or single discs, for that matter — this is not a sprawling, messy affair with a few hidden gems. It’s jam-packed with lots of flavours and great ideas executed brilliantly by top-notch musicians.

I can’t wait to see them when they play a must-see triple soul ’n’ funk bill featuring The Soul Motivators and American soul legend Lee Fields & The Expressions at the Phoenix on Halloween.

“By the time our second album (Good Life) was done, we’d built a strong following and we really wanted to take some major steps forward,” Matt Fullbrook, the band’s bassist, says. “As an independent band with an atypical style, we knew we’d have to do something really special. The double LP arose from the desire to create a truly unique piece of art and a unique, immersive experience for the listener.”

More importantly, KCLR had the chops and repertoire to make it work. Elements of house, hip-hop, rock, drum ’n’ bass and reggae slip in and out of songs seamlessly, delighting the ears and keeping you strapped in for the glorious ride.

And even though funk is at the core of what they do, the two discs — titled Electric Believers and Concrete Motion — boast different vibes. The first is more rock-oriented while elastic soul-funk rules the second.

“We deliberately constructed the two sides of the album to show two sides of the band,” Fullbrook says. “There’s a heavier rock influence on Electric Believers, and some of the tunes are more melody and story-driven than Concrete Motion. Concrete Motion shows off our funk influences and showcases the whole band in terms of solos and instrumental breaks. We think each disc provides a different type of experience while still telling a cohesive musical story.”

While the double LP format gives the band license to showcase its myriad influences, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

As Fullbrook says: “It’s been very important for us to make sure that every song sounds like KCLR, no matter what influences we draw from.”

By all accounts, the band’s attention to detail, its eclectic sound and killer shows have paid off handsomely.

It boasts a large and devout following, one that helped KCLR raise a whopping $26,000 in two months to make this record.

Fullbrook credits the crew’s popularity to the fact that “people want to dance, they want to engage.

“If there’s a reason why this band is having an impact on music fans, it’s because we think about them obsessively every step of the way. The wonderful part is that every bit of passion we show them comes right back to us.” - The Toronto Sun

Run, don’t walk to pick up this album… Parkdale Funk 2: Sides could be THE Canadian album of the year for 2013 - The Spill Magazine

Parkdale Funk 2: Sides is a reintroduction of sorts to the seven-piece funk band based in T.O.’s west end. If the first three albums (including Parkdale Funk 1) didn’t make you take notice, this extremely ambitious work definitely will. A long-held double-album concept, a two-month crowd-funding initiative and 40 guest musicians including D-Sisive and Airplane Boys added up to a double LP and, finally, a release date (October 15). Even more impressive for the band that combines the old (jazz, rock) so seamlessly with the new (hip-hop, electronic) is their sweaty live show. Coming soon to a ’hood near you. - NOW Magazine

It's cliché to call a concert a "marathon," but in the case of KC Roberts & the Live Revolution's record release show Friday night at the Mod Club, it's also accurate. The seven-piece, joined throughout the night by a rotating cast of talented backup singers, musicians and rappers, kept on rocking until 2:15 am, putting their show over the four-hour mark – pretty much how long it takes most trained athletes to run 42 kilometres.

The lengthy, two-set fête didn't deter their fans from letting loose – dancers at the front of the full room boogied at full tilt throughout the night to tunes from KCLR's double album, Parkdale Funk 2: Sides, as well as older favourites. - NOW Magazine