“It’s safe to say that no one sees the keyboard quite like Marco Benevento,” says the Los Angeles Times. For his new album ‘Swift,’ out September 16 on Royal Potato Family, Benevento has added another layer to his keyboard prowess, songcraft and lauded solo work: his voice. On ‘Swift,’ Marco is singing for the first time ever, with lyrics that he penned (in consultation with Aaron Freeman from Ween). The 9-track album was produced by Richard Swift (Shins, Damien Jurado, Foxygen) and features Marco’s band of Dave Drewitz on bass (Ween) and Andy Borger on drums (Tom Waits, Norah Jones).
‘Swift’ was inspired by Benevento’s love for LCD Soundsystem and My Bloody Valentine and David Bowie – crisp, strange pop songs sliced through with Marco’s wholly original approach to the piano, electronics and songwriting. A number of songs, including lead-off track “At The Show,” were sparked by a rare Casio drum machine that Marco acquired recently. The drum machine, the companion piece to a Casio keyboard that Marco’s father bought him as a child, led to late night dance parties at his Woodstock recording studio as he learned how to use it.
Marco and his band will be touring through the summer and fall, see below for dates. In addition to recording all of the keyboards on recent albums by AC Newman, Aaron Freeman and Rich Robinson, Marco recently contributed songs to ‘This is The Town: A Tribute to Harry Nilsson, Volume 1’ and ATO’s ‘Bob Dylan In The 80s.’
“Benevento jams with a concentration on the textures and colors available in his keyboards and arsenal of manipulated pedals and effects. His songs feature deceptively rich, catchy melodies and straight-ahead grooves that expand with subtle mounting gestures.” – Rolling Stone
Track list
Side A
1. At The Show
2. If I Get To See You At All
3. Witches Of Ulster
4. Eye To Eye
5. Coyote Hearing
Side B
6. One And One Is Two
7. The Saint
8. No One Is To Blame
9. Free Us All
Tour Dates:
June 20-21 – Stratton, VT – Wanderlust Festival
July 11 – Saugerties, NY — Hudson Music Project
August 2 & 3 – Portland, OR – Pickathon
August 15-16 – Denver, CO – The 1up
September 5 – Catskill, NY – Catskill Chill
September 16 – New York, NY – Mercury Lounge
September 17 – Brooklyn, NY – Rough Trade
October 2 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
October 3 – Portland, ME – Empire
October 4 – Providence, RI – Columbus Theatre
October 17 – Washington, DC – Gypsy Sally’s
October 18 – Charlottesville, VA – The Southern
October 19 – Richmond, VA – The Camel
October 25 – Austin, TX – Art Outside Festival
November 6 – Columbus, OH – Woodlands Tavern
November 7 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Tavern
November 8 – Chicago, IL – Martyr’s
November 9 – St. Louis, MO – 2720 Cherokee
November 10 – Indianapolis, IN – HiFi
November 11 – Nashville, TN – The Stone Fox
November 12 – Atlanta, GA – Terminal West
November 13 – Greenwood, SC – Music on Maxwell
November 14 – Raleigh, NC – King’s
November 15 – Asheville, NC – Asheville Music Hall
December 12-13 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
