On Monday, Sept. 21, reggae band John Brown's Body will stop in Park City to perform at Downstairs before embarking on fall tours in the UK and New Zealand. The New Zealand tour is part of an exciting foreign exchange: from September 10-25, new Easy Star label-mates The Black Seeds, one of New Zealand's top acts, will make their North American debut opening for John Brown's Body at 11 shows across the U.S. Then, The Black Seeds will return the favor in November by bringing John Brown's Body to their home country to open for them.
Coinciding with these tours will be the release of John Brown's Body's most recent studio album, "Amplify," in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. The album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Reggae Chart in the U.S. and made iTunes' "Best of 2008" list.
John Brown's Body is very excited to introduce The Black Seeds to American audiences on this tour. This New Zealand-based band fuses funk and soul with classic reggae. The Black Seeds have two double-platinum selling albums and one gold album in their home country, and they have been a hit on the European festival circuit in recent years. In many ways, the two bands are kindred spirits, working from a reggae base but pushing the genre in new directions, while also both having explosive live shows.
John Brown's Body has gone through significant changes since the release of 2005's "Pressure Points." Lead singer Elliot Martin underwent throat surgery, several longtime band members departed and the band dealt with the death of bassist Scott Palmer. Palmer lost his battle with cancer in 2006, only six months after his diagnosis. Emerging from these changes, the band's current lineup is a focused, more experimental outfit than ever before, challenging the usual notions of contemporary reggae.
The show in Park City will open at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the door. Downstairs is located at 625 Main St., on the corner of Heber Ave. For more information about the show, call 615-7200 or visit www.downstairsparkcity.com . For more details about John Brown's Body, visit www.johnbrownsbody.com , www.myspace.com/johnbrownsbody or
www.facebook.com/johnbrownsbody.
