Swift Technique’s Ageless Funk: Exclusive Interview with Jake Leschinsky

Swift Technique put on an incredible performance at The Blockley on July 18^th, as they opened up for Soulive for The Liberty Ball Part II.  This band  not only has incredible musical marksmanship, but their stage presence is undeniable.  I can honestly say that the shows put on by this up and coming funk band resemble the EPIC and interactive dance party’s put on by the funk master himself, George Clinton and the P-Funk Allstars.

Now let me tell you, these funky mother fuckers sure know how to get down!  Some have even said that “this band sounds like Galactic and Pigeons Playing Ping Pong had a baby!”  Not surprising with their bursting energy and infectious goofy smiles.

Swift Technique consists of soul vocalist, Chelsea Lynn Weaver, Greg Rosen on the trumpet, Matt Fischer on trombone,  Brian Blaker on the saxophone, Jay Davidson on the keyboards, Jack Leschinsky on the bass and Rich Agren on the drums.  I personally witnessed Chelsea Lynn Weaver mesmerize the audience with her soulful voice while singing the band’s cover of Earth Wind and Fire’s Shining Star.  I also caught a glimpse of Rich Agren playing his drum set with only one stick and his bare palm.  Jay Davidson would belt out the brass on his saxophone while simultaneously playing the keyboard; meanwhile, Jack Leschinsky’s hands effortlessly glided over the neck of his bass bewildering the crowd with his outstanding solo.  Andy Bree was ripping the guitar throughout the entire show as the brass section of Rosen, Fischer and Blaker energized the crowd with their horns and added humor to the performance in a three-stooges aspect.

I was lucky enough to be given an opportunity to ask Jake Leschinsky a few questions for Headspace Magazine.  The band enthusiastically shared with me aspects of their performance, influences, experiences and aspirations:

Rebecca: When you opened up for Soulive at the Blockley this summer I noticed that you all had excellent stage presence.  There was seemingly choreographed dancing, vocal interaction with the audience and then towards the end the band even parading around in the crowd.  Did such a level of comfort and theatrics come naturally?  Were any of you involved in theater in the past?

Jake: The comfort on stage to express ourselves has always come naturally for this band. Some members have background in theater, but a major aspect of this band has always been involving humor and our individual personalities into the music and stage show. Swift Technique has become a creative outlet for the band members to express themselves musically, physically and spiritually. When we became an all instrumental band about two years ago, we really started to hone our stage presentation and choreography.

R: Watching this performance reminded me a bit of that legendary, old school, P-Funk.  You know that say “there ain’t no party like a P-Funk Part and a P-Funk party don’t stop.”  As a band you guys really brought that to your show!  Have you guys ever seen George Clinton and P-Funk live?  Would you say that the Funkadelics have somewhat influenced your music or performance?

J: You hit it right on the nail here. I believe almost everyone in the group has had the opportunity to see P-Funk live. The presentations of P-Funk, along with James Brown, Sly Stone, Marvin Gaye and other funk/soul greats has had a major influence on our live show. One of the major aspects of this is the collective feeling of being part of the show – everyone is in it together to have a good time and let loose, we just happen to have the instruments. For Swift Technique, however, we also infuse a modern punk-funk influence that can be traced directly back to early Red Hot Chili Peppers. To circle back to your question, one of our favorite albums is “Freaky Styley”, which was produced by P-Funk mastermind George Clinton.

R: How do you guys feel about scatting and do you think it needs to be brought back into the funk scene?

J: Scatting has never been a part of our group, but funk is all about expressing yourself, so I wouldn’t be surprised at all if one of our guys got on the mic one night and pulled out a crazy scat solo. Basically, whatever it takes to get the Funk out.

R: Also, your stage set-up in general was extremely powerful with the electric guitar towards the back with the drums, bass front left, keyboardist front right and horns front and center.  How did you figure out this stage structure?  Did you know off the bat or did it come from trial and error?

J: This is a funny story because we literally had to adjust our stage set-up on 7/18/13 to work around Soulive’s set-up. Our normal stage set-up is usually quite different, however, a major prevailing aspect has been the horn section front and center. With the addition of our new vocalist, Chelsea ViaCava, we are once again re-developing and considering new options for our stage set-up. The major goal is to highlight each individual member and give them some space to move around.

R: What is your favorite type of venue to play at?

J: I personally really like venues with an upper balcony, similar to Johnny Brenda’s. I think the group would also agree that there’s nothing like playing at a venue within a beautiful space in nature.

R: Are there any particular bands that you are interested in collaborating with?

J: We’ve been incredibly blessed to share the stage with some of our heroes, including Soulive, as well as The Meters and Wu Tang Clan. Moving forward, we would really like to support The New Mastersounds and Galactic. On the indie level, we’re also dying to collaborate with a kick ass LA based band, Vulfpeck.

R: If you could open up for any band/artist who would it be?

This may vary from member to member, but a prevailing “dream show” would probably be opening for P-Funk or the Chili Peppers.

R: How did Swift Technique come to be- what is the story behind the creation of the band?

J: Swift has had many incarnations on its way to the current line-up and presentation. We started in college with an MC, aiming to combine funk/jazz with a hip-hop presentation. We eventually parted ways with our MC and became a straight-up instrumental ensemble for about two years. Most recently, we’ve added our old friend and vocalist, Chelsea ViaCava, to the group and we’re approaching a completely new frontier for the repertoire and presentation of this band.

R: What artists/musicians would you say influence your music the most?

J: P-Funk, James Brown, Led Zeppelin, The Roots, Red Hot Chili Peppers, as well as several artists in the Ska world.

R: Is there any particular venue or festival that you are aspiring to play at?

J: We’d really like to get the group at Equifunk next year, but on the slightly larger level, it would be a major step to book the band at Bonaroo, Lollapalooza or Summer Camp. In the rock club world, we are also working towards booking the band at Bowery Ballroom, as well as Brooklyn Bowl in NYC.

R: How was the experience of working with Kung Fu? (It says you held direct support slots on the website and I am not quite sure what that means)

J: These guys were literally some of the nicest dudes we’ve encountered on the touring scene. To take it a step further, these guys thoroughly blew our minds with their instrumental compositions and unparalleled technique. It was a truly inspiring kick in the ass to work with these guys.

R: What is your relationship like with The Blockley?

J: Although Philly has always been our home base, The Blockley has given us the opportunity to significantly expand our Philly fan base with direct support slots for Questlove, Orgone, Kung Fu, Stooges Brass Band and most recently, Soulive. For that reason, we owe A LOT to their booking staff for these opportunities. Also, from our travels, we can say that The Blockley has one of the best, true music loving staff in the country!

R: You mostly tour around Pennsylvania and the East Coast; do you have any upcoming plans in the fall for touring in some new frontiers?

J: This past Summer has been monumental for Swift in that we’ve debuted in Georgia, New Orleans, Nashville, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. We’ve developed fan bases through the Midwest, as well, so the goal is to mount a full-fledged cross country tour in the Fall/Winter to support our new release, “you boys be aight”.

R: Are you guys planning on putting out a studio album anytime in the near future?

J: We’ve just released a small quantity of our new studio album, ‘you boys be aight’, and will be announcing an official release/promo campaign later in September.

R: What is your favorite song to cover?

J: Currently, “It Gets Funkier”, by Vulfpeck. I may be speaking for everyone on that…

R: What are your aspirations as a band?

J: In addition to building fan bases throughout the country, and eventually the world, Swift Technique strives to constantly push each other creatively and as musical entrepreneurs. Everyone in this band truly loves to travel and share this special music we’ve created and we hope to see that continue many years into the future!

If there were no such things as obligations, and if the band could perform nightly, I would go back night after night to see their amazing performances as I can imagine no two will be the same.  A Swift Technique concert can be describeds a heavy dose  of music with a hint of theater, all rolled up into the guise of a humungous dance party.   Greg Rosen often serves a pseudo M.C., as he enjoys taking the microphone to interact with the crowd!  Be sure to catch Swift technique at one of their performances either Friday, September 27th at Ardmore Music Hall or Saturday, September 28th at the Sly Fox Brewery, or, better yet, attend both performances and bring your dancing shoes.  (Your feet will hate you from the immense amount of dancing; but your ears will be delighted as well as your uplifted soul)!

Interview by Rebecca Wolfe

Article by Rebecca Wolfe

Photography by Rebecca Wolfe

Check out The Music Vibes Review on Swift Technique & Soulive @ The Blockley:

FUNK Chicken Soup, Gimme that SOULIVE… That Good Stuff!