The Motet

Colorado's The Motet operates as an expansive funk collective celebrated for its high-voltage shows and meticulous charts. Jazz, rock, soul, and Afrobeat threads run through the sound, all steered from the outset by drummer Dave Watts. The ensemble surfaced in the late 1990s, steadily cultivating a devoted audience via relentless roadwork and an eclectic, hybridized style. Largely self-reliant, the group has issued its own well-received recordings, among them 2006's Instrumental Dissent, 2009's Fela Kuti-inspired Dig Deep, and 2016's Totem. Following the 2023 all-instrumental All Day, Portland-based vocalist Sarah Clarke joined the roster.

Dave Watts assembled the Motet in 1998 as a fluid collective whose membership shifted over time. He handled production and release duties for the debut Breathe in 1999, after which the band recorded for two independent imprints: 2001's Play appeared on aNOnym reCOrds and 2004's Music for Life on Harmonized. By then a robust grassroots following had formed around a stable core that included bassist Garrett Sayers, guitarist Ryan Jalbert, and keyboardist Joey Porter alongside Watts. Beginning with the incendiary Instrumental Dissent, the Motet took full control of its output and performed at major festivals such as Electric Forest, Bonnaroo, and Bumbershoot. The group also maintained a strong regional footprint in Colorado, highlighted by an annual Halloween concert that spotlights a different artist's catalog—Prince, Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind & Fire, and others—each year, and it has topped the bill at Red Rock Ampitheatre on multiple occasions.

Dig Deep arrived in 2009 as an instrumental set that folded electronics into the palette while paying tribute to several Fela Kuti compositions. The band's seventh studio album, the 2014 self-titled The Motet, reflected a collective songwriting process in which every member contributed. Between tours the musicians continued recording, first with 2016's Totem—produced by Soulive's Eric Krasno—and then 2019's Death or Devotion. Although vocalists Jans Ingber and Lyle Divinsky have held regular posts, the Motet periodically returns to an all-instrumental format, as heard on the dense and funky All Day. Shortly after that album's release, Sarah Clarke entered the lineup as the newest vocalist.