Since breaking out on his own in 1995, Money Mark, the "fourth Beastie Boy," has evolved his organ/keyboard-based grooves from short, funky thumbnail-sketches and lo-fi pop to loose, jazzy soul-jams.
Although critics seem to favor last year's "Change Is Coming," it was earlier work that led to collaborations with the likes of Beck, Santana and Femi Kuti. (Recently, he composed the theme song for the U.S. animated series "Da Mob," starring rap-legend Kool Moe Dee.)
More accustomed to playing in basements than at center-stage, it took time for Mark (real name Mark Ramos-Nishita) to adjust to the spotlight. He once called live shows "a tug-of-war without a rope," but after five years on the road, Mark has developed his theatrical skills.
There is a little bit of Andy Kaufman in his stage act. He has banged cymbals while teetering precariously on the edge of a stepladder and challenged "hecklers" to come onstage and play better -- which they have done. The hijinks spill over into the instrumentation, as well. There are kazoos and trumpet-playing balloons. Is he playing a joke on the audience? (And if so, do they get it?) It's hard to tell. Either way, Mark is tugging the invisible rope to his advantage.
With the new album's bank of gritty funk, breezy jazz and heady Latin flavors, his upcoming gigs should prove to be a mixed bag of goodies, with a few surprises thrown in. And with Mark's old touring companion, DJ Kid Koala, as a warm-up, the shows should be right on the money.
