Saturday Sessions Live from Hopatcong, NJ by The All’s Eye: Review

by admin April 12, 2025

April 12, 2025

Saturday Sessions Live from Hopatcong, NJ by The All's Eye: Review

The All’s Eye is back and beaming straight from Hopatcong, NJ with a jammy, soul-charged live EP that feels like you’ve just stumbled into the coolest session this side of the Hudson. “Saturday Sessions Live from Hopatcong, NJ” is two tracks of musical alchemy cooked up by guitarist Ari Joshua, drummer Ben Atkind, and organ wizard Kris Yunker, and it hits like a love letter to analog energy and unfiltered groove. Recorded in one take at Barbershop Studios (shoutout to Emmy-winner Matt Rifino on the boards), this EP is a glowing capsule of vibe, grit, and good ol’ cosmic improvisation.

First up is “Gramama,” which launches with percussive taps and a lighthearted vocal rasp before Ari’s guitar kicks in with that loose, happy-go-lucky swagger. Then comes the Hammond organ, swirling in like it owns the joint. Inspired by Joshua’s Granny Queenie (a sermon ghostwriter, mind you), the track pulses with gospel-sparked bluegrass spirit and ancestral reverence, all wrapped in an electric psych-blues glow. It’s toe-tapping, head-nodding stuff.

Then at the 4:15 mark, “Say What You Wanna Say” crashes the party with its title chant echoing like a mantra for the soul. It’s playful but powerful, driven by rock-steady drums and an organ that dances, slides, and seduces its way through a maze of jazz-laced licks. Originally penned for a boogaloo session (featuring Skerik and Delvon Lamarr no less), this stripped-down trio version is raw, fiery, and unafraid to go deep.

Together, these tracks make “Saturday Sessions” only the beginning of what The All’s Eye has lined up for 2025. Mark your calendars because you have shows to attend this April, and the studio version to listen this May.

Production crew and players:
Guitar – Ari Joshua
Drums – Ben Atkind
Organ/Keys – Kris Yunker
Producer – Matt Rifino
Mixing Engineer – Matt Rifino
Mastering Engineer – Matt Rifino
Recorded at – Barbershop Studios
Artwork – Ari Joshua

Also the shows this week to support the release:

The band will play 2 shows to celebrate the release of this EP, April 11th at Umbra in Brooklyn, NY and April 12 at Park City Music Hall in Bridgeport, CT. As you may expect from some of the hardest working musicians on the scene – between all the players in The All’s Eye there are 18 shows on the books for April.

Band members shows this month :

The Ari Joshua Band Phish After-Parties
4/18 – Queen Anne Beer Hall – Seattle, WA
4/19 –Queen Anne Beer Hall – Seattle, WA

Ben Atkind
4/15 – HiFi – Indianapolis, IN
4/16 – Barrelhouse Ballroom – Chattanooga, TN
4/17 – Asheville Music Hall – Asheville, NC
4/18 – Jefferson Theater – Charlottesville, VA
4/20 – The Cut Live – Gloucester, MA –
DJ Logic and Friends w/ Phillyglove, N8 Bass, Ray Paczkowski
4/26 – Flying Monkey – Plymouth, NH – Performing w Club d’Elf

Kris Yunker with Bearly Dead
4/4 – Lark Hall – Albany, NY
4/5 – [Venue not specified] – Boston, MA
4/19 – Valley Craft Ales – Wilmington, VT
4/20 – Colony – Woodstock, NY
4/25 – BNH Stage – Concord, NH
4/26 – Vinegar Hill Theatre – Arundel, ME
4/30 – Main Line Brewery – Richmond, VA