Squat is a four-piece jazz band based in the Athens/Atlanta area. The band formed in 1994 while taking jazz improvisation classes under Steve Dancz at the University of Georgia. The current lineup includes Trey Wright on guitar and piano; Carl Lindberg on bass, percussion and vocals; Tommy Somerville on piano, tenor saxophone, percussion, and vocals; and Darren Stanley on drums and percussion. Musically, Squat is a mostly instrumental ensemble performing originals and standards inspired by a variety of styles including '60's era Blue Note, Bossa Nova, Afro-Cuban, salsa, samba, blues, gospel, trip hop, and New Orleans second line. In 2004, Squat celebrated its 10th anniversary with the release of a compilation CD and tour. Squat will release its sixth CD Squat on February 13, 2007, on Namaste Records. • Squat has played with Maynard Ferguson; The Wailers; Medeski, Martin, & Wood; the B-52s; Charlie Hunter; Sound Tribe Sector 9; the String Cheese Incident; Lonnie Liston Smith; Col. Bruce Hampton; the Derek Trucks Band; Maceo Parker; Cory Harris; Squirrel Nut Zippers; and many others. • Squat is a five-time winner of the best jazz band award at the annual Flagpole Athens Music Awards (1999-2002, 2006). • Squat was a finalist in the 2004 Future of Jazz Competition in Atlanta, GA • Squat has been a featured performer at the Atlanta Jazz Festival, the Athens Jazz Festival, the Human Rights Festival, Athfest, the Cherry Blossom Festival, Bel Chere, the Lake Eden Arts Festival, Harvest Midtown and many others. • Gruelash was listed as one of the top 10 best local releases of 2002 by the Atlanta Journal • Members have performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Jazz A Vienne, and the World Sacred Music Festival in Bangalore, India. Members have performed with Jimmy Haslip, John Patitucci, Tim Armacost, Widespread Panic, Cory Christiansen and Joe Lovano. DISCOGRAPY The Future of Jazz Volume 1 compilation (2006 Jammates records) Recycled 1994-2004 (2004 Namaste Records) Gruelash (2002 Namaste records) Placebo (1999 Namaste Records) Tales From the Side of the Road (1997 Namaste Records) Cycles (1995 Namaste Records) ATHFEST 1999 compilation (1999 Ghostmeat records) What the press has said about Squat: “…a work of post modern musical architecture. Exploded forms of bossa nova are bolted to gospel throw downs. Cyclical trip hop phrasing gets squeezed between syncopated layers of Afro-Cuban polyrhythms and all these disparate wings are anchored by an armature of jazz” - Creative Loafing, Atlanta, GA “Both hard core jazz fans and the young newly initiated find this quirky band worth listening to, a melting pot of new and old jazz sounds” - Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, NC “We should all count ourselves lucky to have a hometown combo this cool!” - Atlanta Journal and Constitution “Athens best jazz band!” - Creative Loafing, Atlanta “Local favorite Squat (is) one of Athens most innovative bands” - The Bell Ringer, Augusta GA “Squat pulls off everything from straight ahead swing to gospel and makes it speak with authority” - Creative Loafing, Atlanta, GA “…eclectic and versatile Athens ensemble…the best jazz band in Athens. They haul a**, switch instruments, take risks, and easily shrug off mistakes” - Flagpole Magazine, Athens, GA “a rarity and treat for those who like adventurous instrumental music …. Solid musicianship and musical inventiveness” - Macon Telegraph, Macon, GA “…surprisingly groovy jazz” - Stomp and Stammer, Atlanta, GA “..jazzy, funky, unpredictable talented local combo mixing elements of funk, Caribbean, and hip hop with bits of hardbop, Latin Afro-Cuban, and rock. Squat regularly ventures into a broad field of musical experience” - Flagpole Magazine, Athens, GA “Athens jazz fusion heavyweights , Squat’s concerts usually results in more than one audience member being moved by the band’s wealth of talent” - UGA/Red and Black, Athens, GA