Captain Squeegee frontman Danny Torgersen is a bona fide quote machine. The singer and trumpeter is known for his unconventional views. Just take his vocal contribution to a song that asserts 9/11 was an inside job (in dubstep!) or simply supporting underdog Ron Paul for president. Those views might be atypical, but they occasionally lead him on a journey to sudden genius. Or that's probably the universe at work. Hard to tell.
Tonight, the horn-rock masters will pair up with the 20-piece Mesa Community College Big Band for a night that's bound to be the "ultimate experience of Squeege-genre-blending and Big Band revival," the event's Facebook page insists.
"The universe thought of it first," Torgersen says. "We then channeled the idea and manifested it in reality. We have always had a jazz influence in our music, and many of us play jazz religiously, so it only made sense to fuse our musical mission with a full-size jazz band."
The band will unleash two new Squeegee songs, both part of a new album with an undisclosed release date. But it isn't just any old album. "We're not just trying to make an album. We're trying to save the world. ASAP," Torgersen says of the disc.
For the past few weeks, the Captain and MCC's Big Band have been rehearsing the songs, with Squeegeers taking the time to write and score music for the extra horns.
"Not many people know that Squeegee already makes full scores and printed music for original songs, so arranging all the extra horn parts was just a matter of staying up for days on a computer and becoming delusionally creative," he says.
The show is the first in a series of Squeegee-supporting events throughout May at the Alwun House, including a screening of their trippy six-part web series, "Lucidity," on May 12, and an "eclectic evening of scenes ranging from robot poetry to ritual sacrifice and everything that's hilarious in between," which is actually just a sketch-comedy night on May 19.
Check out the video preview below. It's in true Torgersen style.
