Environmental Encroachment

EE has participated in a few of my events and they are simply AMAZING. The crew is accommodating and super polite and crazy talented… I can’t say enough nice things about them. My guests raved about them for years. FUN FUN FUN. Thank you all!

Last week at the Guerrilla Truck Show I ducked into a courtyard to call my friend whom I was supposed to be meeting. She said she couldn’t rouse her husband and kids for the excursion. I said, «That’s too bad. There’s a second line band with rabbit ears playing in the street.» «Could you repeat that, please?» she asked.
So I backtracked a bit and tried to give her some idea of what she was missing, but it’s hard to describe this band over the phone. They play raucous old-​school New Orleans jazz. Most of them are wearing hats that involve animal ears. At one point in their processional they were pedalling along on something that appeared to consist of three tightly bundled old bicycles, competing for street space on Fulton Market with yuppies in SUVs and exasperated professional meat packers working the evening shift in their automotive carts.
The only downside is that a week later I found myself singing a catchy tune whose lyrics consist entirely of the words «Thelonius Monk.» Walking through the Loop singing «Thelonionoonionionious Monk» does not give you the kind of street cred you get with indie rock, ancient protest songs, or Childe ballads.

EE lead our wedding party parade/​procession down Chicago Ave. and for our May wedding, and it absolutely was better than I could have imagined! I corresponded with Mike Smith on the logistics, and he made it absolutely easy for me all around. The music (funky New Orleans style jazz) was spot on, and they were such a joy to watch and listen to. We had so many smiles and thumbs up from the bystanders and stopped traffic — the band definitely highlighted our happiness for the day and was an awesome real life soundtrack. Our guests really got a kick out of it and thought it was an awesome way to begin a reception (and I tend to agree!). I couldn’t imagine my wedding without them — thanks EE!

Any rag tag marching band that does AC/​DC songs. .. 5 stars in my book!!!

These guys are nuts, but they rock. If you need to hire a marching band with performers who dress clown, Mardi Gras or animal-​style, these are your people. They will perform big outdoor events like Lollapalooza, but they’re available for your next birthday party — see
. I think it would be great for my neighborhood to have them encroach the backyards. They encroach with music, art, dance, theater and puppets. Lots of brass instruments. I saw them for the first time at the Museum of Contemporary Art, as part of the John Cage MusiCircus performance.