Sandwich provided a tasty, jazz filled appetite and filling treat at the Slice, Sept. 22, which whetted the appetite for anyone who loves generous helpings a of jazz, R and B, creativity and a dash of humour.
The band, including Kyle Harmon on drums, Ryan Heseltine on saxophone, bassist Paul Holden and lead vocalist/ guitarist Arlen Wutch, mixed a variety of music, playing everything from Burt Bacharach to Primus and everything in between.
It isn’t often you hear Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” turned into a quirky jazz song including a drum solo consisting of dog bark samples, let alone followed by a jazzy version of Beck’s hip hop tinged hit “Two Turntables and a Microphone, “(Where It’s At)” then George Michael’s “Careless Whisper.” It was pure unadulterated brilliance.
They also added a couple Sandwich instrumentals featuring some sizzling guitar from Arlen Wutch and some superb Ryan Heselitine saxophone.
Evan Eushenko joined them on stage for a couple songs. Throughout they put their own stamp on a variety of classic soul including Marvin Gaye’s Mercy, Mercy Me, ’80s pop, Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” and much, much more including some odd choices for covers, which really worked including Harold Faltermeyer’s Axel F, best known as the theme from Beverly Hills Cop, which they had the crowd chant along with the main melody.