The Savants of Soul to perform Friday night at The Atlantic

Local lovers of soul have waited three months to welcome back a homegrown band to the stage — a band that arrived to the Gainesville music scene in late 2010, but whose aura, sound and je ne sais quoi is nostalgically reminiscent of 1963, even for those who consider themselves ‘90s kids.

On Friday, The Savants of Soul will headline at The Atlantic Nightspot, located at 15 N. Main St., the first time they have performed live since April. Retrolux and Whale Feral will join the 10-piece band as supporting acts starting at 9:30 p.m., one hour after doors open.

The Savants of Soul will be performing in Gainesville as part of a three-show hat trick, followed by performances in Jacksonville and Raleigh, North Carolina. The latter performance will be preceded by a trip to New York City to record their next single, “Dead Man Running,” which has reached its final iteration and is ready for permanence.

“We are going to Brooklyn to record with members of Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires, which is crazy. After the death of Sharon Jones, I would be hard pressed to find a name more significant in the world of soul music, so it’s a great experience for us,” said Savants of Soul drummer Alexander Klausner.

Klausner said the band’s thrill for the opportunity is not without its nerves; the band will be recording in analog, which dates back to the use of the phonograph and does not provide the wiggle room for mistakes that digital recording does.

“We’ve tried to get that analog sound through digital means but it’s not quite the real thing. We just keep telling ourselves, ‘Don’t screw up.’ If one person messes up, we have to start over,” Klausner said. “The real challenge for us will be to play perfectly in sync while feeling that pressure.”

Klausner radiates gratitude when he speaks about the band label Swamp Records’ “excellent launch pad.” The label lets UF students run the show with simply the reward of a love for music, but the Brooklyn studio recording will kick off a new wave for The Savants of Soul.

Soon after the side-A track is finished, the band plans to film a music video and back it with good publicity “to see who’s interested and see what kind of media attention we can get with the release,” Klausner said.

From there, it’s up to the industry to take The Savants of Soul to the next step.

“We’re always going to be excited and blessed and fortunate to be able to play for the Gainesville crowd and be a part of this scene,” Klausner said. “All the acts (playing Friday) are really spectacularly good. They set the bar high for Gainesville music.”

 

Five years ago, Anna James and Mäynard Shaye met on Craigslist when Shaye posted an ad looking to form an indie band. The age difference between the two put a pause on their plans until they met again in 2015 at a party and launched Retrolux, said James, the band’s vocalist.

Today, the band joins The Savants of Sound at Swamp Records as label mates, and the show will also be their first performance in three months, as they took the summer off to work on their second extended play, which will follow their debut, “Real Life.”

“We are so stoked about this show and our upcoming EP. We’ve got a lot of plans for these upcoming months, and I can’t wait to get back onto the scene,” said Shaye, who launches all samples and plays keys for the band.

“We are also working on enhancing our performances with more visual art. We hope to follow this time with bigger shows and eventually, a tour,” James added.

Retrolux will play at High Dive, located at 210 SW Second Ave., with the band flipturn on Aug. 24 at 9:30 p.m.

There is no shortage of up-and-coming artists in Gainesville, and Whale Feral, the first performance on Friday’s set list, is focused on live music as their main feature as they don’t identify with any particular genre.

“We put our focus more on having a cohesive sound than focusing on a genre, but if we have to pick, we are definitely descended from the Grateful Dead and Allman Brothers branch of music, which especially in the Dead’s case, means a little of everything,” said lead guitarist and vocalist Matt Urban.

He said the band’s main focus is playing live rather than under a label. He said they promise a different experience for every show, which includes different set lists and improvisations.  

David Havens on drums, Will Bethea on bass and Ricky Cagno on rhythm guitar and vocals join Urban this Friday. The band also plays back-to-back weekly sets at First Magnitude Brewing Company, located at 1220 SE Veitch St., every Sunday from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Doors open Friday at 8:30 p.m. at The Atlantic Nightspot. Tickets can be found at showclix.com for $8 and are $10 at the door. The show is welcome to music fans ages 18 and older.