Thundercat

If there was a theme to Friday night's Red Bull Sound Select showcase at Three Links, it was one of challenging performances.

All three artists on the bill -- headliner Thundercat, local emcee -topic and Austin producer Roger Sellers -- were intent on pushing the limits of their respective genres at this show. And, for its part, the crowd was more than eager to have its own boundaries expanded.

Then again, the point could also be made that standing in lines was the real theme of this January show that, yes, we curated. As impossible as the prospect of locking down a precious square foot of standing room inside of Three Links' 200-capacity room seemed given the high RSVP count to this concert, enough folks braved the 40-degree weather of the night along Elm Street and all the way down to the 7-Eleven at the end of the block regardless -- and many even remained there long after most would have given up hope.

For those lucky enough to make it inside, though, any inconvenience would prove well worth it. We're guessing very few people left without having at least one perception changed.

For us, that happened during Sellers' opening set, where the multi-instrumentalist aggressively challenged the concept of what it means to be a quote-unquote DJ. Where does that distinction end? When Sellers began beating on toms along with his mostly pre-produced tracks? When he began singing and dancing around like a wonderfully engaging goofball? Whether folks tended to buy in to the many “Roger Sellers Is Not a DJ" stickers that now plaster the venue, he certainly opened a dialogue.

Likewise, -topic stepped his game up for this show, too. The biggest difference for the Dallas rapper at this performance, of course, was the fact that he was joined by a live backing band called Mixed Magyk for this one. Flashing influences of R&B and subtle notes of jazz, the outfit capably followed -topic's every lyrical turn, at one point going half tempo while the emcee dropped his voice an octave, mimicking the effect of a DJ dropping the BPMs. At another point, they replicated the sample from Outkast's "So Fresh, So Clean" that -topic then rhymed over. He was equal parts energetic and charismatic from the moment he hopped onstage until he dived off and walked out the back door, leaving the band to finish its last instrumental number alone. But never did the collective rile up the crowd more than its balls-out cover of the Pokemon theme. More than anything, -topic's set made perhaps the best case yet that hip-hop acts belong on more non-hip-hop bills in this town. Not surprisingly, we've already seen his name pop-up alongside indie and punk acts on at least two more bills in the next month.

Still, it was when virtuoso bassist Thundercat took the stage that minds were truly blown. Playing his six-string bass more like a guitar -- or hell, maybe even a piano? -- than a typical four-string bass, Thundercat created a sonic palate that kind of defied description. Joined by just a keyboard player and drummer, the trio dabbled in pop, soul and R&B as filtered through some pretty avant jazz influences. If we had to put it into words, we'd say his material sounded like if Victor Wooten musically masturbated over the coolest, unreleased Hall & Oates b-side of all time -- and then Squarepusher came along and remixed the whole thing.

Or maybe not ? Like most folks at Three Links on Friday, we weren't quite sure what we were hearing, just that our horizons were rapidly expanding and that we desperately wanted more of it.

Whether we quite understood what we were seeing, there's one thing that's certain: It was a hell of a lot of fun to watch.

Thundercat, also known as Stephen Bruner originally, is an American bass player that does a range of different genres. During his career he has managed to release two solo albums, and many people may know him for his work with Flying Lotus. He like many other musicians, grew up with music in his family. At 15 he first got noticed as he had a small hit in Germany as a member of a boy band called 'No Curfew', quite cute for a group of young boys. Later in his career he joined his brother in the band 'Suicidal Tendancies', taking over from the former bass player who left the band. His first solo album was released in 2011 called 'The Golden Age of Apocalypse', which included his previous band in it. Although this music didn't do a lot for me, he shows such enthusiasm when he's playing on a stage, you can see he thrives off the audiences response and everyone in the crowd loved him. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed watching him and how admired he and the members of Flying Lotus were by their adoring fans. He’s done well for a bass player, they often don’t get the recognition they deserve, I wouldn’t go out of my way to see him again, but he was great as part of a band.

I want to start off by saying I really love thundercat and have been listening to him for years. I adore his music and him as a person and I was insanely pumped to see this convert. I was really disappointed. The sound was awful at the venue with everything being far too loud in the mix, especially drums, and thundercat’s bass was far too quiet. The gig lasted a gruelling 2 hours and at least one hour of that was horrible improvisation. Which all blended into one because the instruments were all at a similar frequency. You couldn’t hear anything clearly and it was a huge muddy improv mess. There would be cheers after the extended improvisations in every song and I think that the crowd weren’t cheering the improv they were cheering that it was over and he had finally started playing the song again. Basically the melody or groove was completely lost and I just got totally sick of it. He forced us all to endure this before playing ‘them changes’ and ‘friendzone’. At the end I was totally exhausted and I wouldn’t see him again :/

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.

Incredible performance. Thundercat is one of the most energetic and genuine performances I've had the pleasure of seeing, and his love for the music he plays is so evident when he does. He played a good repertoire, even dabbling into some of the stuff he's produced for Kendrick, but most of his set was a large, weed-fuelled, intermingling jam session. He came back for a total of about 5 encores, and never lost the speed in his fingers as he played the 6 string bass. Really a good musical experience.

AH-FREAKING-AMAZING!!!!
I knew it was going to be an amazing show, with songs ranging from old to new, he did not disappoint. The crowd was awesome and gave really good energy. The surprise of the show was his amazing drummer, Justin Brown. He went on runs that were both beat and melody driven and complex while keeping everything connected. It was spectacular to see. AHHHHHMAZING SHOW

Left after the third song. I knew it was a sold out show, but that was goddamn ridiculous it being an all ages show, and having 21+ crammed like sardines on one side (I know its standard but...) and im pretty sure it all was a fire hazard it being that way. You could barely walk, let alone barely get to the water station ... Ill never go back to Wonder Ballroom, such a shit show

Funky, soulful, intergalactic: three words I would use to describe my experience at Union Transfer for Thundercat's performance. He was absolutely electrifying with his bass guitar and melodic voice along with the accompanying keyboard and drums. Both absolutely beautiful, and I would hope that anyone who has the opportunity to see Thundercat, that they take it.

Just saw him at the Shrine (LA). The mixing was terrible. He came on late and decided to have full on conversations in between each song. I just think his solo stuff is too far out there to really enjoy or even dance to (unless your a huge jazz fan). I left part way through and was not alone. Flying Lotus opened and that was the highlight of the night.

My daughter took me as a surprise for my 59th Birthday! I absolutely loved the show! The way he plays the Bass is amazing! I would highly recommend this show! You will not be disappointed!i plan on seeing Thundercat again! On a side note- I also got my pic with another Super Star- Forget Brennan From LA! Great Night!!!!