Too Many Zooz Explained

Too Many Zooz
Origin:	New York City, New York, U.S.
Genre:	Brass house (self-defined)
Years Active:	2013–present
Current Members:	Leo Pellegrino Matt "Doe" Muirhead David "King of Sludge" Parks

Too Many Zooz is an American music group based in New York City, consisting of Leo Pellegrino (baritone saxophone), Matt "Doe" Muirhead (trumpet) and David "King of Sludge" Parks (drums).^[1]

Formation and viral fame

Pellegrino and Muirhead met at the Manhattan School of Music, where they were attending. Pellegrino and Parks had played together in Drumadics, a local busking band.^[2] Teaming up in mid-2013, the trio started busking together that August at various stations in the New York City Subway in their self-defined genrebrass house.^[2]

The band defines brass house as a mix of jazz, Afro-Cuban rhythms, funk, EDM and house music.^[3]

They gained fame when a video of one of their subway performances, recorded by a passerby at the Union Square station, went viral on YouTube in March 2014.^[2] They are known as well for Pellegrino's characteristic dance moves while playing.

Stage and studio

Too Many Zooz recorded an EP, F NOTE, in January 2014, which they sold at their busking performances. The band has recorded three more EPs, followed by their first full-length studio album, Subway Gawdz, on June 27, 2016, receiving mixed to positive reviews.^[4]

By January 2015, the band was booked on a tour at theatres and small clubs across the United States.^[5] They continue to tour,^[6] and played backup for Beyoncé for her televised CMA Awards performance on Nov. 2, 2016 in Nashville, Tenn.^[7]

Kaskade's July 2016 single "Jorts FTW" features Too Many Zooz.^[8]

"Warriors", from Too Many Zooz' Subway Gawdz album, was featured in Google's commercial for their Pixel 2 smart phone in October 2017.^[9] "Warriors" was also featured in the Flag Parade of the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 Grand Final.^[10] "Brnx Bmbr" is featured in a KFC commercial for the Triple Grab N Go. "Get Busy" is also featured in the beginning credits of the Netflix original movie The Package.

Music videos

• Bedford: (June 29, 2017) The video is the band playing on the subway train in New York City, from Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn to First Avenue in Manhattan at 3:33 in the morning.^[11]
• Warriors: (April 27, 2018)^[12]
• Car Alarm: (September 26, 2018) The music video for the song "Car Alarm" was filmed on the top of a supermarket in Philadelphia on 11th street. The video shows the Center City skyline in the background. The video consists of the band playing around a truck alarm going off.
• Trundle Manor: (October 31, 2018) The video is filmed in Trundle Manor in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The video was released on Halloween as a project for the holiday. The concept is that Matt Doe is torn between good and evil in the video.
• Pink Yesterday: (December 18, 2020) The video is the band playing in Domino Park in front of the Manhattan skyline, starting with the three band members visible, while the camera slowly moves backwards to reveal an increasing number of additional musicians, until a full band is playing along.
• Rake Stepper: (May 2, 2023)^[13]
• Mad: (February 5, 2024)^[14]
• Nowhere Else to Go: (February 16, 2024) The video shows the band playing Poker together with Moon Hooch^[15]

Discography

• F NOTE (EP) (19 January 2014)
• Fanimals (EP) (6 September 2014)^[16]
• Brasshouse Volume 1: Survival of the Flyest (EP) (21 November 2014)
• The Internet (EP) (1 May 2015)
• Subway Gawdz (LP) (27 June 2016)
• A Very Too Many Zooz Xmas (EP) (19 December 2018)
• ZombiEP (EP) (September 2019)
• Retail Therapy (LP) (March 2024)

External links

• • Site on Bandcamp

Notes and References

1. Web site: Ex-Foxboro High jazz band member finds his niche in the Big Apple's underground. 8 May 2014 .
2. Web site: The hottest thing in NYC music is these subway buskers . Lindsay . Putnam . . 2014-04-14 . 2017-01-06.
3. Web site: Too Many Zooz. Spotify. en. 2019-05-07.
4. News: Too Many Zooz - Subway Gawdz. Album of The Year. 2017-01-04.
5. News: Too Many Zooz swap subway for the stage. Devlin. Mike. 2015-01-21. Times Colonist. 2017-10-25.
6. News: Too Many Zooz Heads to the Fox Theatre This August. Music News Desk Staff. 2016-06-23. Broadway World. 2017-10-26.
7. News: Brass House Trio Too Many Zooz on Backing Up Beyonce & Dixie Chicks for CMA Awards Showstopper. 2017-01-04. Billboard.
8. Kaskade Gets Tribal With Too Many Zooz on 'Jorts FTW' . Kat . Bein . . 2016-07-14 . 2017-01-06.
9. Web site: Google Pixel 2 – Questioning?. 16 October 2017.
10. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: The flag parade with the Beatbombers at the Grand Final of the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest . YouTube.
11. Web site: This band managed to base an entire song off a Philly car alarm. www.phillyvoice.com. 27 September 2018. 2019-05-07.
12. Web site: 2018-04-27 . Too Many Zooz - Warriors (Official Music Video) . 2024-04-23 . Youtube.
13. Web site: 2023-05-02 . Too Many Zooz ft. Michael Wilbur - "Rake Stepper" (Official Music Video) . 2024-03-23 . Youtube.
14. Web site: 2024-02-05 . Too Many Zooz x Too Many T's - "Mad" (Official Music Video) . 2024-04-23 . Youtube.
15. Web site: 2024-02-16 . Too Many Zooz x Moon Hooch - "Nowhere Else to Go" (Official Music Video) . 2024-04-23 . Youtube.
16. News: Album Review: Too Many Zoos, Fanimals EP - BandWagon Magazine. 2014-10-21. BandWagon Magazine. en-US. 2017-01-04.