Eden Sam & Pokey (ESP)

Imagine three tectonic plates meeting, their slow grind forcing a line of volcanic activity…capybaras scurrying into the woods, howler monkeys howling in the tops of trees, ash falling on every leaf, a five year old trying to do a handstand, the bottom of her feet black as the sky…imagine three musicians coming together, complaining about the storm of ash - “do we need to call the organizers of ‘Swing ‘em Hard San Francisco’ and tell them our plane might be late?” Now…imagine those tectonic plates were three of the most well-known, well-traveled square and contra dance musicians in the history of the genre for the past 20 years and that they play a mesmerizing blend of blistering old-time and klezmer tunes and 1920s songs.
 

Led by New England Conservatory’s Eden MacAdam-Somer, joined by midwesterners Sam Bartlett and Pokey Hellenberg (ESP for short - yes, they know what you are thinking). Not to be boring, but they have all been around: someone has won Clifftop, played Carnegie Hall, the National Theater of Taiwan, almost been trampled by elephants, had a fist-fight with Dicky Betts, done festivals in India, Afghanistan, Macedonia, France, Belgium, China, whatever. What we care about is this: ESP will play an intimate show or a rockin’ dance for you and you will go away a better, more loving person, with a new understanding of plate tectonics and howler monkeys.