Accent On Tampa Bay, Artist Feature >>
Accent Spotlights . . .
MarchFourth Marching Band
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A decommissioned fire engine pulls up, and
out pour dazzling stilt walkers, flamencoskirted
fan-wielding dancers, brass players
of all kinds, a lone battery-powered bass
player, and drummers wearing harnessing
made from bike parts, all decked out in
costumes that range from Village People
camp to steampunk goth glam.
They may start marching down the
block, playing on the upper deck of a ferry or at a
major stadium, or dancing a hole in the dance floor. They may break
into wild Balkan dances, down-and-dirty New Orleans-style jams,
madcap circus romps, or the theme song to Rocky. They may do just
about anything.
This is the MarchFourth Marching Band, often called “M4” by
fans, a quirky, funky instant party of a group whose twenty-five odd
members make, sew, build, drive, design, choreograph, compose,
and mix everything themselves.
This includes their latest album,
“Rise Up”.
The carpenters, stonemasons,
artists, business owners,
metal workers, physical
therapists, and lawyers of
MarchFourth have similarly
transformed the staid conformity
of the good old marching
band into a celebration of
vibrant individuality. “There’s
no uniformity to our uniforms,”
laughs dancer, stilt walker, and
long-time M4 member, Nayana
Jennings. “It’s really individual.
There’s no dress code. We don’t
tell people what they have to wear.”
While keeping a countercultural edge, MarchFourth strives to
remain “accessible and approachable,” as Jennings puts it, walking a
tightrope between sensual and family-friendly, Clockwork Orange
and bigtop mayhem, carefully orchestrated performance pieces and
barely contained chaos.
For more information, visit www.rockpaperscissors.biz
02/18/10 >> go there