Rivers on Mars

About Rivers On Mars

"Rivers on Mars" produces edgy performances that give the audience a chance to share the band's sense of exploration, euphoria, and danger. Drawing on their previous work with groups like Burnt Sugar Arkestra, Sun Ra, Red Baraat, Squelch, and The Last Poets, this futuristic four-piece ensemble specializes in conjuring up 25th Century Dance Music. They create a world of abstract, gravity-free groove --- trance-inducing waves of interstellar melody; splashes of searing guitar and harmonic counterpoint; loops and sonic mayhem bubbling up spontaneously via laptop surging above a deep riverbed of rhythm liberated from the earthly traditions of jazz, funk, trip-hop, and afro-beat...  

GREG TATE - Laptop
Greg Tate is an African-American writer, musician, and producer. The focus of his writing has been African-American music and culture. He is a founding member of the Black Rock Coalition and the leader of the internationally renowned Burnt Sugar Arkestra.  As a writer, he has five published works to date, including his latest, the highly regarded Flyboy 2: The Greg Tate Reader.

ON KA’A DAVIS - Guitar
On Ka'a Davis arrived onto the jazz scene in the early 80's most notably as a member of the Sun Ra Arkestra as well as Don Ayler's Septet. Over the years, Davis has recorded and or worked with a vast array of great artists some of whom include Luther Thomas, Charles 'Bobo' Shaw, Matt Shipp, Simone Weissenfel, William Parker, Jemeel Moondoc, Kenny Wollesen, Juni Booth, Sabir Mateen, Daniel Carter and as a member of Avram Fefer's 'Rivers on Mars". He is also a bandleader, having created the critically acclaimed 'Famous Original Djuke Music Players', with two releases, including for John Zorn's Tzadik label. Davis' label On Mu Music has produced over 30 releases.

CHRIS EDDLETON - Drums
Chris Eddleton is currently touring Europe and the U.S. with Red Baraat, a popular NY-based Punjabi-Funk band. He also toured with Verve recording artist Lizz Wright, performing at various music festivals such as; The JVC Jazz Festival in NYC, New Orleans Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Toronto Jazz Festival, Telluride Jazz Festival.  He has performed in several off-Broadway productions such as; "The Black Nativity", "The Supreme Bishop Tartuff", the French premier of Melvin Van Peebles's "Sweetback's Badassss Song", and also Rain Pryor's "Fried Chicken and Lattkes". He has performed with various Brazilian artists such as Cidino Texiera, Cyro Baptista, Tony Mola, Vanessa Fallabella, Juliana Aquino, Romero Lumbambo, Nilson Matta, and Claudio Roditi.  He has shared the stage with the Beacon Brothers, N'Dea Davenport, Blackthought (of The Roots), Pharoahe Monch, Jean Grae, Weldon Irving, Antonio Hart, Dave Valentine and Roy Hargrove. 

AVRAM FEFER – Saxes, Bass Clarinet, Flute
Avram Fefer is a New York-based composer, improviser, bandleader and player of multiple woodwinds. He has appeared on eleven CD’s as a leader, many more as a sideman, and has performed in clubs and festivals throughout Europe, Japan, Africa, and the Middle East. You may have heard him alongside Archie Shepp, Bobby Few, the Last Poets, or the David Murray Big Band. You may have also seen him perform in off-Broadway productions such as Ivo Van Hove’s “Streetcar Named Desire” or Melvin Van Peebles’ “Sweet Sweetback’s Badassss Song”. His own bands have included musicians Eric Revis, Michael Bisio, Chad Taylor, Steve Swell, and Wilber Morris, and he plays regularly with Big Picture Holiday, Burnt Sugar, and Adam Rudolph’s Go:Organic Orchestra. He also enjoys a variety of inter-disciplinary collaborations --- including with painters, poets, dancers, and sound designers, as well as film, television, and theater. In 2012 he initiated the Resonant Sculpture Project, a unique international series of solo musical interactions with the large-scale works of iconic sculptor Richard Serra.