Photo by Adam KissickCARRTOONS, aka solo bassist Ben Carr, made his Newport Jazz Festival debut on August 2nd with an energetic performance that sustained an undeniable groove. Carr was joined by guitarist and vocalist Julia Zivic, vocalist Joanna Teters, keyboardist Kiefer Shackelford, and Drummer Diego Ramirez. Carr and his band captivated the crowd by laying down funk-filled basslines and vocal harmonies that melted together. To honor his years attending the festival with his dad as a teen, Carr brought out his father, Rick Carr, to play an upbeat violin section. Carr was also joined by Haile Supreme, who is featured on Carr’s brand new album Space Cadet. In addition to the honor that comes with performing on the historic Newport stages, Carr also developed a surging excitement for his upcoming fall tour after performing a great set with the band members he’s grateful to have by his side. We caught up with Carr at the festival to learn more!
Abby Stanicek: What was it like performing at Newport Jazz for the first time after coming as an attendee for years and performing with your Dad?
Ben Carr: I mean, it’s super surreal to be here in this context. It was definitely a dream of mine growing up and on the bucket list. This is the place where I decided I wanted to study music in college. I was 17 and I was like “You know what? I wanna go to music school.” This place will always have a special place in my heart for that reason. It’s a sentimental and beautiful day. I’m very proud of my whole crew and it’s just so awesome to bring my dad here.
AS: It was just so great. I was smiling ear to ear. I also feel that inspirational vibe when I attend the festival.
BC: This place has a spirit. It really does. I know that none of my crew had been here before, so I knew it would be really special to bring them here for the first time, too. It’s been a full circle day in a lot of ways.
AS: What was the process behind coming up with the set list for the day? I know it was probably a little bit of pressure because you have an allotted time on stage and today’s a huge deal.
BC: I really wanted to start with stuff that we were comfortable with. I wasn’t as concerned as I’d usually be about starting really intensely or with a classic opener. I had the idea to create more of a slow build of a set, and I feel like I accomplished that. I felt that by the end, we were really elevating and felt like were almost just starting, in a good way. The way I like to see festival sets personally is that when it’s over it feels short and like we could actually keep going. That was the idea, but who knows if I actually accomplished that.
AS: I thought it was great and it flowed really well. And on the subject of your setlist, what were you most excited to perform before the set, and what song ended up being your favorite to perform?
BC: It’s funny you say that because the one I was probably the most excited about, we didn’t play. It was one we hadn’t played before, but we rehearsed it yesterday. It was an arrangement of the SWV song “Rain.” I was excited to play it from a bass player’s perspective, but they gave us the 10-minute warning and it was really important that we got Haile Supreme up there for the last two songs.
AS: What draws you to work with your vocalists and instrumentalists, Joanna Teters and Julia Zivic?
BC: I was in a band with Joanna fifteen years or so ago. We met in college, and we were in a band for seven or eight years called Mad Satta. Throughout that, Julia would sing backup vocals for us around that time, so we’ve always had a thing where I produce music for her and we play as a band. And when I started doing CARRTOONS, she was a free agent. Neither of the girls were in bands anymore, and I was able to bring them along for this. They’re such an incredible icing on the cake for people that know me and like the music, and often don’t even know that’s what they’re gonna get as a bonus. It’s definitely been a blessing for audiences and me to have them along for the ride.
AS: They’re incredible. Your work, combined with their voices, was such a great thing to witness. You can see how passionate they are about it, too. On the subject of production, is there anyone you’ve met here or you’ve seen perform that you would want to produce for?
BC: I just ran into Samm Henshaw a second ago since we played on the same stage and our management has been trying to get us together. But we really needed to actually be in person and be like “Hey! I like your stuff. We should get together. So hopefully, that’ll lead to something someday, maybe in five years from now or so, and I’ll be like “Oh yeah!”
AS: Have you seen any acts today that have left you feeling inspired in terms of production or writing your own music?
BC: I’m gonna have the same answer and say Samm. I was just seeing his set right before we walked over here and it was really cool. Our friend Solomon Fox was playing keyboard and it was just great to see good people thriving.
AS: After performing this weekend, what are you looking forward to with your upcoming album release and tour dates that you have coming up?
BC: I’m excited for more of what we did today. With the touring situation we have, it’s a family affair. It’s just a fun hang. I’ve designed it to be something we can all look forward to from a social perspective too. Anybody who’s traveled doing music knows that these are long days, so you’ve gotta be around people that you really love. I’m looking forward to having more stories and good times on that tour. I feel like this is gonna be the beginning of a new chapter for me in a lot of ways. I’ve had those good kind of butterflies about how everything’s gonna go, and I’m excited about it. I’m making some changes, but I think they’re all gonna be for the best.
Carr’s new album, Space Cadet, is available for your ears wherever you listen to music.