Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal‘s combination of soul, funk and R&B is in a word, electric. Best displayed in their high-energy live show, the blend of honest lyrics and rich, intensely soulful vocals merged with a top-notch band create an undeniable chemistry. Formed in 2012 in famed blues town Lincoln, Nebraska, the award-winning five-piece band includes some of the area’s most revered and accomplished musicians. Inspired by the historic sounds of Stax, Motown, Muscle Shoals, New Orleans, Philly and San Francisco, the band continuously crosses musical boundaries both in style and era, and joins forces each show with a common goal – to have the crowd dancing so much they forget even their smallest troubles. In 2017, Josh was featured as a contestant on ‘The Voice’, and the band completed their first European tour; a 27-city stint capped with a live album release from their show in Brussels, Belgium.The hard working band completed several national tours from 2015-2017, playing more than 150 shows in 32 states each year, including opening for friends of the proGram, Mr. George Clinton and Mr. Charles Bradley (rest in soulful peace). Their year-round touring schedule took them from coast to coast, including several major summer music festivals.
I had the chance to catch up with Josh before he and Soul Colossal head to Madison to bring that goodness to Atwoodfest on July 28th. The band takes playing on The Clyde Stubblefield Stage very seriously as you’ll hear in this conversation, so we are expecting this to be “one of those shows’ people talk about for years. Josh and I talk about the upcoming album to be released first overseas, where Soul Colossal will be off to shortly after, and those in Madison will be treated to some of these new tunes in advance. When asked what artists he would share if given an hour of greenarrowradio to proGram, he did not hesitate his answering. Find out who would be on his playlist by clicking play above.
