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Bruner grew up in a creative and musical family, with his father Ronald Bruner Sr., an established drummer known for his work with Diana Ross and the Temptations, and his brother Ronald Jr. known as a Grammy-winning drummer, who has worked with the likes of Kenny Garrett and Stanley Clarke. Bruner’s earliest musical excursion was in the boyband No Curfew before joining his brother as a member of the L.A. metal band Suicidal Tendencies.
It was during this time Bruner found an audience for his acrobatic and elaborate playing style, later becoming the go-to session musician for artists in the black vanguard and subsequently worked on Erykah Badu’s “New Amerykah, Pt. 1”, J*Davey’s “Dirty Love”, Sa-Ra’s “Love Czars” and Snoop Dogg’s “We Rest in Cali” to name a few in a host of collaborations. The talented bass player also worked on Badu’s follow-up album “New Amerykah, Pt. 2” in 2010, and the same year began his fruitful relationship with Flying, Lotus contributing both bass and vocals to his album “Cosmogramma” in 2010.
In 2011 Bruner released his debut solo album “The Golden Age of Apocalypse”. The album was produced with the help of Flying Lotus, can be heard to take inspiration from ’70's fusion artists including Stanley Clarke and George Duke, and earned the musician a series of acclaims. Bruner subsequently contributed on label mate Flying Lotus’ “Until The Quiet Comes” in 2012, and “You’re Dead” in 2014. The bassist’s sophomore album “Apocalypse” arrived in 2013 and received an across the board positive response from fans and the musical press alike.
Stephen Bruner, better known by his stage name Thundercat is a multi-genre hopping, multi-instrumentalist who has been garnering critical acclaim Stateside ever since he first established himself in 2002. The R & B aficionado can list Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar as past collaborators and although he moves between genres frequently, he is held in high acclaim no matter where he decides to settle.
On a record Bruner skips between the genres of R & B, jazz fusion, electronic and even funk with relative ease however this is not as easy a transition on the stage. Luckily Stephen is joined by a selection of equally proficient musicians who help to create the genre bending sounds of his discography and lend an overall cohesion to the performance. The audience remains totally engaged as there is a lot to look at during the show yet they make themselves heard following the finale of 'Heartbreaks + Setbacks' with deafening applause.
The new Hamilton Leithauser album is terrific. One song is better than the next, including all the bonus tracks. Hamilton is a mesmerizing performer to watch. So much stage presence, and he does amazing things with his voice -- ranging from softly singing sweet ballads to raging out hard rockers, and hitting every possible mood in between. He and his new bandmates put on a great show. His new sound isn't so far removed from the Walkmen, as to make you miss the talents that made him standout as their frontmen, yet it's distinctive enough to not feel like an imitation or extension of their sound.
"I'll Never Love Again" is my fave song of the year, and watching it performed live transported me. He has a very talented band behind him, including backup vocals from his wife.
He apologized for not having many songs to play, which I understand. My only minor complaint was that he only did 11 songs. At other shows, he's done a 12th "St. Mary's County," which I would have loved to heard. But when a performer gives you everything he has physically and bears his soul the way Ham did with everything song he performed at this show, it's hard to quibble.