When I was invited by Rick Oliver (From RIX Entertainment Group) to see “The Santucci Brothers with Mungo”, a collaboration they call “Mizu”, play at the Riverside on December 8th, 2022, the name of the band was familiar. I had never heard or seen The Santucci Brothers, so I did not know whether I was going to get BSU great Ray Santucci with some classic rock and roll or maybe I thought, “it could be his children”, what would the sold out room hear? Is the name only a coincidence? I went with an open mind and ears with hopes I would see Ray. Any “older” BSU fans will remember the great linebacker at Boise State in the late 70’s and early 80’s. Always winning in those years, even winning the 1980 1-AA National Championship. I was, I am a Big BSU fan, so deep down I was hoping to say hi to Ray if he was indeed involved.
While getting ready and still wondering where anyone named Santucci would appear, I looked for the band members. Seeing none, a gentleman seated behind me asked “if I was a reporter”. I am far from a reporter, but must have looked like one LOL. I said “sort of” as I looked to see Ray Santucci. We had some time to catch up some and I learned the band is indeed named for his sons. Marco keyboards and more, Dominic on bass and more, and Rocco Santucci guitar and vocals. Rocco appeared and we had time to chat a bit before they started.
He told me they call their music “Neo Soul”. Rocco explained the music was a bit of Al Green with Hip Hop flair. I tried to imagine that sound; and I could not get a mix of those that made any sense in my head. I was curious before, that now I was just full of wonder what the sound could be? So I sat back to watch and hear.
Rocco took the stage and looked the part of a lead man. Rocco began with very tasty soulful guitar licks. Smooth and sweet is how I would describe their own song, River. This really peaked my interest as the drummer Will and the Saxophone came in and added some “blue soul” to River. Rocco’s serenade to slowly bring in the large audience worked real well in this room. My interest went from curious to very interested. The audience looked very interested also.
After a quick greeting by Rocco, the other band members filled the stage during another original, titled Sekelela. Now six strong, this band made excellent progress toward their sound. By the time they did their song, Woman (a salute to women) the groove began to move us in our seats. “The Santucci Brothers with Mungo”, a lead singer from Malawi, followed Woman with three more songs that began to blow the windows open with the fresh air of originality blowing through the crowd.
The second set brought more energy and a truly original sound. What a breath of fresh air to have a flavorful new band from Boise. They have an international flair; and look, not to mention a sound of their own. The vocals became more central and Emily Clark, a BSU music major turned professional singer, took the groove to a very clear and clean mountain top. Mizu, the name of the collaboration of Mungo and Santucci Brothers, means ‘roots’ in Chichewa, the national vernacular language in Malawi. Now add wonderful vocal guest “Paluku”. He added smiles and more energy to the music. The dance floors began to move. Whips and Chains was a sexy song with a sexy beat. That is when their originality really came to full clarity. Daddy Dance Break and Daddy had me listening for mentions of Ray Santucci. LOL!
Gimme Your Love closed out the band’s performance with all 8 members jamming, thrilling all of us to pure fresh originality. But wait, the crowd could not let them go; and we all needed to hear more of this new sound. The Santucci Brothers Mizu came back after a loud call for an encore. Hold Me is their single from 2021; and is available on Spotify. This song was a real treat for the encore, with the Neo Sound of what I will call “Smooth & Strong Hip Hop-Blues”. Layered harmonies were a highlight thru the evening as all members could sing well. The visual of the band matched the new music, and they worked the crowd as a team. I heard so many different flavors of beats with a groovy bass, to a Soulful Hip Hop blend of Blues and Rock & Roll. You must hear The Santucci Brothers to feel this new originality that is a breath of fresh air blowing though Boise. Their Bio is on Spotify and they have lots of music and video on YouTube. Boise is very proud of The Santucci Brothers in any musical collaboration. Original talent with original sound!
Mark Vickrey
Network Music Management
