Polyrhythmics Serve Up Groovy Slice With ‘Cake Lady’ As ‘Life From Below’ Approaches

Polyrhythmics confirmed their eighth studio album, Life From Below, arriving on September 12. The Seattle-based funk-fusion outfit also shared the record’s fifth preview, “Cake Lady.”

Polyrhythmics previously released the Life From Below singles “Chophouse,” “Smoke & Mirrors” “Mayo con Yayo” and the title track. The new LP follows the band’s 2023 LP, Filter System.

Life From Below marks the first time the seven-piece group — guitarist Ben Bloom, drummer Grant Schroff, keyboardist Nathan Spicer, bassist Jason Gray, trumpeter Scott Morning, trombonist Elijah Clark and saxophonist Art Brown — were able to track together live in the studio following remote sessions due to the pandemic.

“On Filter System, we had primarily written that music during COVID lockdown and recorded apart and largely remotely throughout,” Bloom said. “On Life From Below, we were back to playing shows and tracking all together in the studio, and this music reflects that shift.”

“Life From Below is our attempt to dive deeper into the familiar territory that has helped to define the Polyrhythmics sound over the past 15 years,” Bloom added, “and also explore some new directions in the funk music landscape that we to date hadn’t really touched.”

The album’s fifth single, “Cake Lady,” is “a sweet slice of funk and future-jazz that draws its first breath from the playful bounce of Herbie Hancock’s ‘Watermelon Man’ then sprints along with its own hypnotic groove,” as per a press release. Listen below:

Catch Polyrhythmics live. Scroll down for their tour routing and ticket info.