Album Review - Empire Central by Snarky Puppy

The return to Texas for the band and their first live-in-studio album since 2014.

Snarky Puppy’s latest album, Empire Central, has arrived!

Coming off 2019’s Immigrance and 2020’s Grammy-winning Live at the Royal Albert Hall, the musical “collective” (if that’s even a way to describe their incredible band) has been on a hot streak with releases in the past few years.

This release holds a special significance for me, as it is the first new album since I discovered Snarky Puppy in early 2021 via a YouTube recommendation of We Like It Here track Lingus.

Empire Central is the band’s first live-in-studio effort without special guests since the aforementioned We Like It Here and the first recorded on American soil since 2012’s GroundUP, AND their first one with three drummers in tandem.

The album features Snarky Puppy’s entire incredible roster, which includes these 19 absolutely incredible musicians:

Bob Lanzetti - electric guitar
Mark Lettieri - electric and baritone electric guitars
Chris McQueen - electric guitar
Justin Stanton - Wurlitzer, Fender Rhodes, Yamaha CP70 electric piano, Minimoog Model D, Prophet 10, and trumpet
Bobby Sparks - Hammond B3 organ, Hohner D6 Clavinet, ARP String Ensemble, and Minimoog Model D
Bill Laurance - Fender Rhodes Mark 8, Yamaha CP70 electric piano, Minimoog Model D, Hohner D6 Clavinet, Prophet 10, Osmose, and Mellotron
Shaun Martin - Talkbox, Mellotron, Vocoder, Moog Little Phatty, Minimoog Model D, Korg Kronos, and Fender Rhodes
Zach Brock - 4-string and 6-string violin
Mike “Maz” Maher - trumpet and flugelhorn
Jay Jennings - trumpet and flugelhorn
Chris Bullock - tenor sax, soprano sax, bass clarinet, flute, and piccolo flute
Bob Reynolds - tenor and soprano saxes
Michael League - electric bass and Minimoog Model D bass
Nate Werth - percussion
Keita Ogawa - percussion
Marcelo Woloski - percussion
Jason “JT” Thomas - drum set
Larnell Lewis - drum set
Jamison Ross - drum set

Are you a keyboard nerd like me and want to know more about what gear the four SP keys players use? Click here for my full breakdown of their touring rigs and what was used in the Empire Central sessions!

The 16-track album kicks off with the Michael League-penned Keep It On Your Mind, giving us that classic Snarky Puppy sound from the get-go – punchy clav and a Maz effected-trumpet solo along with beautiful harmony between the distorted guitar melody and horn section. Bobby Sparks lights up the ending with a blazing Minimoog solo.

Stank faces abound already as we move into woodwinder (is that a word?) Chris Bullock’s East Bay. Perfectly crafted dissonance between the insistent saxophone and the rest of the horn section is the highlight of the beginning of this track before the guitar leads us into a easy major-key groove for the second half. Chris McQueen takes a brief dissonant guitar solo before closing it out.

League’s Bet comes next, a single released back in August and a song I am VERY familiar with at this point. Continuing the trend of songs that just feel like classic Snarky Puppy tunes, “Bet” has it all. Upbeat and driving grooves, amazing horns (shoutout to Bob Reynolds’ amazing tenor sax solo), and diverse keys (Bill Laurance really shines on CP70 as does Shaun Martin on his signature talkbox).

Trumpet player Jay Jennings’ Cliroy shows his clear jazz background with a twist, as Bullock’s bass clarinet doubles the Moog bass line. Jennings and McQueen lock in their instruments on a great solo here. This cool-down song is perfectly placed after the high-energy “Bet” and leads perfectly into the next tune…

Take It!, penned by keyboard wizard Bobby Sparks, opens with three simultaneous snare drum rolls that leads into an absolutely stank face-inducing groove. Jennings rips a delightful trumpet solo in the first half of the song among sporadic whammy clav fills from Sparks. The highlight of this track is the legendary Bernard Wright, adding his incredible musical insincts to a minimalistic synth solo that is oh-so-funky. The band’s mentor (or “Yoda”) tragically passed away in late spring, just two months after recording this track with Snarky Puppy. “Take It!” will forever stand as a beautiful reminder of Bernard Wright’s greatness and his unmistakable influence on Snarky Puppy. Do NOT miss the amazing drum breaks at the end that feature Larnell Lewis, Jamison Ross, and Jason “JT” Thomas absolutely KILLING it.

A contribution from percussionist Marcelo Woloski, Portal, opens almost like the intro to a movie soundtrack. Beautiful synth textures swirl in the background as we are treated to a jazzy soprano sax solo from Bullock.

Multi-instrumentalist Justin Stanton’s Broken Arrow eases in next with horn melodies reminiscent of groundUP cut “Binky”. A beautiful and gentle tune ensues with gentle guitar melodies. A perfectly jazzy CP70 piano solo from Laurance continues the quiet vibe before a blink-and-you’ll-miss it build drives up to a fantastic final section with soaring organ and a Chris McQueen slide guitar solo.

RL’s, another League composition, opens with funky guitar and an absolutely stank face-inducing groove. Empire Central’s longest track is dominated by the guitar and horns. Two fantastic guitar solos from Bob Lanzetti and Mark Lettieri lead to an even more insane whammy clav solo courtesy of Bobby Sparks.

Percussionist Nate Werth’s compositional debut with Snarky Puppy slides in next with Mean Green, a straight-up groove MACHINE!! An absolutely rock-steady base in the first half of the song allows for the punchy horns to dominate while Shaun Martin sprinkles in some vocoder textures. The stank face-inducing breakdown mid-song is even stronger somehow. Another ripping Bobby Sparks whammy clav solo takes us back into the original groove. Phenomenal stuff.

Fuel City by keyboardist Bill Laurance opens with a melodic talkbox melody. Horns and guitar gradually seep in as the vibe builds, culminating in a drop into a fantastic and funky groove. Zach Brock’s violin plays the melody along with synth in a motif similar to We Like It Here’s “Sleeper”. A driving Shaun Martin Moog solo gives way to another dance party groove.

Justin’s second song of the album, Free Fall, retains that instantly-recognizable Snarky Puppy sound. Bullock’s flute and Brock’s violin intertwine on the main melody as Lettieri’s guitar and Reynolds’ tenor sax then do the same.

League’s ballad Belmont is a masterclass by Bill Laurance on CP70 and Zach Brock on violin. The last cool-down of the album, the song stretches time out and allows you to close your eyes and take in the vibe.

Mike “Maz” Maher’s song Pineapple is an upbeat horn-centric tune that calls to mind the middle section of Immigrance’s “Bad Kids to the Back”. Bob Reynolds demonstrates yet again his mastery of the saxophone tone on this track ahead of yet another phenomenal piano solo, this time from Justin Stanton.

Zach Brock’s Snarky Puppy compositional debut comes with Honiara, another deeply funky track with his violin at the forefront. Written with great contrast between the harsher saxophone and gentle trumpets, this is another very easy song to listen to, drawing to mind a soaring flight over a green forest. Jennings takes a flugelhorn solo and a gentle clean-tone guitar solo from McQueen closes out the song.

Bob Lanzetti rips up the guitar on the intro to his song Coney Bear. Great use of the multiple guitars come in this song with the almost-whiny melody coming over top of the rollercoaster-like groove. Maz takes an aggressive wah-trumpet solo as we continue the unrelenting ride through the song. Strong finish.

The first single released from Empire Central back in June, Mark Lettieri’s Trinity is an absolute masterpiece of a song. From the haunting early part of the song with deep Moog bass and clarinet to Bullock’s dissonant saxophone solo, moving into the hard-charging guitar and then finally the joyous explosion of the final segment – truly incredible stuff.

Sixteen tracks of brand-new Snarky Puppy material have entered the world today and proven that this band has no shortage of new ideas as they approach their 18th year. The band is on tour in Europe this fall and North America in the spring – catch them live to experience the evolution of these tunes!