Vakili Band Tickets

Powerhouse vocalist and songwriter Lily Vakili wasn't born in a crossfire hurricane like Jumpin' Jack Flash, but in Honduras during a civil war, bullets flying overhead. As Vakili says - "It set the tone for everything else".

With three albums under her belt – two as a singer-songwriter and the most recent with her band, 2018's Oh Alright (recorded at Magic Door Studios with Ray Ketchem) – Vakili is preparing to release a second band album, Walking Sideways (recorded at Sound on Sound Studios with David Amlen), that shows her growth as a songwriter, vocalist, and bandleader, and the band's evolution – with guitarist and occasional songwriting collaborator Ben St. Jack, harmonica player Joel Dorow and a rock-solid rhythm section featuring drummer Gordon Kuba and bassist Matt Jovanis.

Vakili Band's musical touchstones include Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, and Prince – with a smattering of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" liberation, David Bowie's chameleon-like "Changes" and the New York Dolls' attitude thrown in for good measure. "I was raised on all kinds of music... I'm omnivorous," she says. "From my parents playing Peruvian highland music to Puerto Rican salsa, bachata, and reggaeton. Those Afro-Caribbean rhythms are built into my music."

For Vakili Band, a live performance takes the music beyond words to achieving a trance-like communal state that evokes whirling dervishes using repetition and the primal beat to achieve a transcendent state. Vakili still has faith that rock 'n' roll can change the world. "If you're asking me, do I believe in love, yes I do," she says. "Performing music live is a pursuit of ecstasy, connection, desire, and love... it's real, heady stuff."