BULLDOG

Bulldog is a five-piece lyric- and beat-driven jazz-rock band with pop, hiphop, and neosoul elements. Newly relocated to Boston, Bulldog formed in Amherst, Massachusetts in 2013. With strong influences from Hiatus Kaiyote, Robert Glasper, Little Dragon, St. Vincent, Portishead, Jeff Buckley, and Ween, the band’s sound ranges from singer songwriter to hiphop, to funk, even to experimental and free jazz. Bulldog thrives at the intersection of jazz and hiphop, of pop and experimental. 

 

Glitchy live drum grooves à la JDilla meet jazz-influenced Rhodes and organ, lyrical bass and saxophone lines, and sweet vocals. The lyrics, usually written by front-woman Nora Murphy, have been noted to often either only repeat or never repeat at all. Bulldog maintains a pop feel without being constricted to the traditional pop format.

 

Their improvised progressions, or jams over a single loop, contrast their other arranged compositions at concerts. A performance might include a musician or rapper sitting in, and often tunes are never played the same twice.

 

The band’s lineup consists of Nora Murphy on vocals and electric guitar, Craig Holland on four- and six-string bass guitar, Ben Silverman on drums, Alec Hutson on saxophone and vocals, and Christian Tremblay on Rhodes and organ.