Touring funk, psych jam band to play 219 Lounge

By Ben Olson
Reader Staff

In the world of live music, there are occasionally bands that stand apart from the rest. Instead of playing the same set over and over again in every backwater town along the tour route, these outliers will cultivate unique set lists and live performances, punctuated by improvisational jams, spontaneous new directions and perhaps even something untested before an audience. Every show, in essence, is unique, which has a tendency to create a loyal fan base hungry for more.

The Jauntee will bring their unique blend of jazz, funk, rock and psychedelic jams to the 219 Lounge for a special show Sunday, Feb. 18 at 7 p.m.

Originally hailing from Boston, this unique four-piece band is now based out of Colorado. Guitarist and vocalist Caton Sollenberger told the Reader it was always The Jauntee’s intention to cultivate a close-knit fan group — even from Day 1. Along with Scott Ferber on drums and vocals, Tyler Adams on keys and vocals, and John Loland on bass, Sollenberger said their early fans helped the band develop a tendency to create unique set lists, instead of relying on the same songs in the same order.

“We started in Boston and I think a larger portion of our early fans were friends that we’d see coming to the various house parties we’d throw in my and Scott’s apartment,” Sollenberger told the Reader. “Over time, they spread out and moved to different places and expanded from there. Our fans are definitely in the same vein as Phish fans, in the way of nerdier fans who catalog your live sets and are excited about new versions of songs. 

The Jauntee playing one of their signature live shows to a grateful audience. Courtesy photo.

“When you know people are following your band, coming to multiple shows, you want to make it a unique sort of set,” he added.

Prior to the pandemic, The Jauntee was touring 150 times a year, but the band has scaled back to a more manageable number since then.

“We were grinding on the road a lot,” Sollenberger said. “It was the winter of 2021 when we said, ‘Let’s do a new album.’”

That experience — along with Adams welcoming a baby — helped the band put things into perspective a bit more.

“As a result of that album, and that period of time, we’ve been a little more selective about our tours,” Sollenberger said. “Instead of going out for six weeks, now we’re just like, ‘Let’s go to the Pacific Northwest for a weekend and play some shows,’ instead of always trying to fill random Thursday nights passing through Wyoming or whatever. It’s given us the opportunity to be more selective, and although we’re playing less shows per year, the quality of the shows has vastly improved.”

While The Jauntee is popular on the festival circuit, Sollenberger said sometimes live shows at smaller venues and dive bars can be rewarding.

“Playing festivals is great because everyone is there specifically to see bands they might not even know,” he said. “On the flip side, bars and small club gigs … you just get the feeling you can stretch out a bit more, pick your time on those jams.”

As a band known for its energetic live shows, recording an album can sometimes be a different experience, Sollenberger said.

“The first album we released, we just started recording some new tracks with our buddy who had some nice gear,” he said. “The second time, we went into the studio … but the downside is there’s no audience, so that energy isn’t really there.”

It was during the recording of The Jauntee’s 2018 release Always Never Knowing that the band found a happy medium.

“We thought it would be cool to record a good live album, so we used isolated recording techniques, but we also doled out, like, 40 tickets to our friends to come by and give the album more of a live feel,” Sollenberger said. “We played two nights worth of music and got two discs worth of our best songs released.”

For the band’s latest release, 2023’s Anything, Sollenberger said instead of trying to capture a live feel, they wanted to make something that could only be created in a studio.

“We did it ourselves, tracked drums here in my house and recorded songs together,” he said. “Basically, our goal was to get good drum sounds then build the rest on top of it. We left room for improvisational moments, and ended up turning the studio versions into their own versions.”

This upcoming show will be The Jauntee’s debut playing in North Idaho. Sollenberger said they’re looking forward to it.

“The Pacific Northwest vibe is right up our alley,” he said.