Pieter Pastoor's blog

Groove masters The Bumptet  bring reckless sophistication to each performance with an improvisational, genre-bending approach to music. Their compositions range in style and complexity, moving from deep funk grooves to epic rock crescendos to intricate, fusion-esque lines and back again–with improvisation, forward motion, and an in-the-moment attitude as the only constants.

Drawing inspiration from the likes of John Scofield, MMW, Garaj Mahal, the Headhunters, and Phish, the Northern California quintet takes listeners on a spirited journey that must be seen live in order to fully appreciate the level of musicianship and soul they bring to every show.  But don’t expect to hear carbon copy renditions of their tunes on stage.  The Bumptet pride themselves on delivering high energy, improvised sets of funk music with skillfully adept execution (including the occasional foray into the jam band outer stratosphere!).

Drummer/composer Ryan Scott Long continues his life long fascination with music that's led him to study drumming and improvisation with Scott Amendola, Simon Lott, Hamir Atwal, Joshua Smith & William Woodley and many other greats.

With his forward-thinking approach powering what may be an exciting new style of drumming, there's a bright future in store for Ryan as he continues to make his mark.

Ryan has recorded/played with Mike Sopko(Bill Laswell, Dosh), Thomas Pridgen(ex The Mars Volta), Vir McCoy(Hamsa Lila, ex Mickey Hart Band), Michael James Booker, Sam Johnson Band, Beforia, Limnus, Scott Barkan, Delphi Freeman, Anna Borja, Joshua Smith(ex Peter Rowan) & many more.

Most recently Ryan released “Just Like We Used To” with his band BroJazz in May of 2016. BroJazz features Ryan on drums, Ben Wallace-Ailsworth on bass and renowned saxophonist Joshua Smith. Oz Fritz describes BroJazz as “a shapeshifting experiment in postmodern jazz that can change course from a heavy, industrial, noisy, trance groove to soft, light, sweet, delicate, waterfall melodies in the blink of an eye; spin your sensibility 180 degrees then drop you off back home with lyrical tenderness and a wink and a smile.”

This week a local treasure visits Listening Lyrics. Michail Musial.

Although a classically trained pianist, and piano technician by trade, Michael's primary musical interest is playing guitar. His style is American Primitive, a genre pioneered by the guitarist John Fahey. He can be heard playing American Primitive covers, original arrangements of cover songs and a few original instrumentals as well. Originally from Pennsylvania, Michael moved to California in 2003 and currently lives in Vacaville, CA. Listen in as we learn about his passion, his music and his life. If your out of the listening area go to www.kdrt.org - the show is streamed live.

Singer-songwriter Nancy Northrup has been greatly influenced through the years by her country, gospel, and folk roots in Kentucky and Tennessee. Her Kentucky relatives were on the gospel circuit throughout the south as founders of The Edmonton Quartet. Nancy spent each summer traveling with them as they sang at gospel music events throughout Kentucky and Tennessee. They would pull a very young, wide-eyed little girl onto the stage in front of thousands of people to sing some old time gospel...and that little girl's life was changed forever. Nancy is also related to the founding members of the down-home southern rockabilly group, The Kentucky Headhunters. Nancy knew from an early age that music was her passion and thanks her Kentucky cousins for being the musical inspiration in her life, along with her grandmother who was blind and a prolific pianist. She is also inspired by Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin, Buddy Miller, Judy Collins, and Mary Chapin Carpenter, Nancy is active in the Bay Area and Sacramento music scene, performing at local establishments, as well as festivals.

Visit Nancy at http://www.nancynorthrup.com

For those not in the listening area this show will be streamed live at www.kdrt.org

The broadway musical Alexander Hamilton is a huge hit. The younger generation has grabbed on to this amazing story told in a rap/hip hop way. It's really about protest and in America we have not stopped protesting. So today's show I will play some known and not so well known protest songs from around the world. I think we all know that the voice of protest runs deep in song.  The following description is from the site https://musictodiefor.wordpress.com/50-greatest-protest-songs/. Some but not all of the songs were also selected from this site

– A song that has a purpose. A song that doesn’t confine itself to commenting on or bemoaning the ills of the world, but seeks in some small way to change things. It may do this by calling directly for something to happen – “free Nelson Mandela”, by informing us, by appealing to our hearts and our emotions, or by challenging commonly held ideas.

Getting these guys in the studio took a while but we have them this week. The Bottom Dwellers are a four-piece Americana band from Woodland, California. Formed in 2003, the group has three full-length releases under their belts, “Deep on the Line,” “Twang Americana,” and “Think I Need a Drink.” With original songs ranging from twangy and gritty to sweet and creepy, the Bottom Dwellers have a uniquely Northern-Californian sound. Bottom Dwellers are: Ivan Sohrakoff, vocals/guitar; Robbie Thayer, vocals/guitar; Mark Eagleton, double bass; Chris Eynon, drums.  visit them at

Local talent continues to impress and this week's guest is no exception. Born and raised in Woodland, CA, Seth Cooper, the lead singer and instrumentalist for indie band Alamo Merchant, swoons in high falsetto and rumbling baritone to script tragedies ripped right from the silver screen.  Whether it be the idolization of the disco era or a cold, meditative drive through the blizzards of West Texas, Cooper's stories convey a sense of farm boy wit and wonder with the world at large.

All Listening Lyrics shows are live on Fridays from 4-5PM (PT) on KDRT 95.7FM. For those outside the listening area, the show will stream live online at KDRT.org . It will also be available for replays in the show archives or as an podcast on iTunes under LISTENING LYRICS.

The ukulele will be front and center this week on Listening Lyrics. Abhineet Ram will share his talent and knowledge of the ukulele. I have heard him play and it was exceptional. Abhineet is a fourth year cell biology student at UC Davis and started playing the ukulele when he was 14 years old. He also playes the clarinet and bass clarinet. As if that isnt enough, he is also a thrower on the UC Davis Track and Field Team. With him in the studio will be Matt Elliott with his saxaphone - I'm looking forward to one great radio hour.