Second Sundays: Ambrosia Parsley & Slavic Soul Party

Ambrosia Parsley with the Elegant Too and Slavic Soul Party recorded live at Pioneer Works on June 8, 2014.

Singer and songwriter Ambrosia Parsley is probably best known for the work she did with her band Shivaree. Their first album was described by Pitchfork as “spooked Americana full of eclectic sounds and randy songs about spankings and cannibals." Their song "Goodnight Moon" attained cult status after being featured on the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill 2. Ambrosia has now teamed up with Chris Maxwell and Phil Hernandez who, as the Elegant Too, have produced work for Yoko Ono, Ray Davies and others. Ambrosia has just released her first album in seven years-­‐ Weeping Cherry.

Slavic Soul Party has created an acoustic mash-up of Balkan and Gypsy sounds with North American music, weaving the gospel, techno, funk, dub, jazz, and Latin influences of New York's neighborhoods seamlessly into a Balkan brass setting. SSP!'s music has won the ear of fans and musicians on both sides of the Atlantic, and their tunes have been learned by Serbian brass stars Boban Markovic Orkestar and New Orleans funk sensations Galactic, among others. In addition to touring throughout the US and Europe, SSP! holds down a residency every Tuesday in Brooklyn, which has become a destination for music fans from around the world. They have performed at Babylon (Istanbul) with the Karandila Orkestar, at Irving Plaza (New York City) with Gogol Bordello, in Carnegie Hall, in Sing Sing prison, as well as Zimbabwe, Mexico, Macedonia, and Serbia.

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