Undertow Brass (fka What Cheer? Brigade)

The Providence-based 19-piece radical brass band has brought their music to city streets, tiny dance clubs, American Legions, parking lots, alleyways, public parks, and ferries… and that’s just in the state of Maine! Mixing the sounds the Balkans, New Orleans, Bollywood, samba, and hip-hop with punk intensity and classical precision, they prove that great parties need no electricity. The New York Times called them “Thrillingly competent, with undimmable energy…an explosion of good cheer.”
Since 2005, they’ve shared the stage and collaborated with a who’s who of the music world: Blondie, Dan Deacon, Man Man, Japanther, Dengue Fever, Okkervil River, Lightning Bolt, Ninjasonik, Mika Miko, Wolf Parade, Matt and Kim, Slavic Soul Party, Javelin, Sage Francis, and Chain and the Gang. They’ve appeared at Lollapalooza, the Newport Folk Festival, Aarhus Festuge (Denmark), Sziget (Hungary), and Guca (Serbia), offering mobile moments of intense revelry. Requiring no amplification, their live shows defy boundaries—literally. Their SPACE sets have ended in the streets…
A note from Undertow Brass Band on the name change:
The What Cheer? Brigade is now Undertow Brass Band. “What Cheer?” is the city motto of Providence. It references a popular, but unsubstantiated story that portrays our city’s founding as an exception to the brutality of colonialism. We changed our name, so it no longer references this harmful and inaccurate narrative. To learn more:

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