John Medeski's Mad Skillet - Mad Skillet (2018)

Mad Skillet was born of a late night show in New Orleans, LA during Jazz Fest 2015. John Medeski and Will Bernard’s yearly quest to play together found a special chemistry with the addition of Kirk Joseph and Terence Higgins. The eclectic, far-reaching backgrounds of Medeski and Bernard alongside this legendary NOLA rhythm section generated what Medeski calls, “a vast musical universe with limitless potential”. Mad Skillet’s grooves are deep - New Orleans steeped in jazz, blues, psychedelic rock, and R&B - a treat for the body and mind.

John Medeski is Mad Skillet’s leader and keyboardist. Best known for his buoyant, organ-centric approach to jazz as a part of the trailblazing trio Medeski Martin & Wood, he also collaborates often with John Zorn and John Scofield and plays in lauded supergroups HUDSON, The Word, Spectrum Road, and Phil & Friends and in 2013 he released a introspective solo piano album on OKeh/Sony Records called A Different Time.

Will Bernard is a guitarist renowned for his imaginative playing and versatility; he’s played in groups spanning jazz, hip hop, world and experimental music while also serving as bandleader for his own projects Medicine Hat, Rockamovya and Grammy nominated, Party Hats.

Kirk Joseph is a virtuoso sousaphone player; his creative combinations of marching band traditions with jazz and funk influences contributed to defining the modern New Orleans brass band sound. He is a founding member of the beloved Dirty Dozen Brass Band and leads his own project Backyard Groove with many of New Orleans’ finest musicians.

Terence Higgins is a drummer and also a New Orleans native; he immersed himself in the rich New Orleans music scene and emerged a prominent and influential figure. He has toured and recorded with Ani DiFranco, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the John Scofield Piety Street Band as well as with his own band Swampgrease.

"For me, New Orleans is magical. As a creative, improvising musician, going there feeds you in way that very few places do. There’s something about New Orleans that brings out a quality that makes the music both accessible and artful.” says Medeski. "There’s room for unexpected things to happen.

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