The Mutaytor

Much more of a performance troupe than a recording act — imagine the legendary Human Be-Ins and other assorted freak-outs of the Haight-Ashbury era rescored as performance art along the lines of Cirque du Soleil — the Mutaytor is a blend of audience participation, carnival sideshow, and improvisatory jam rock. Naturally, then, the Mutaytor has its roots in Nevada's Burning Man festival, where such self-consciously hippie-ish ideas don't receive nearly as much mockery as they would elsewhere. In 1996, a performance artist and drummer named Manny the Mutaytor spread out a field of bubble wrap on the ground at the festival and laid various percussion instruments out on its surface, inviting any passers-by to join in. The following years saw an increase both in the number of participants and the variety of instruments played, culminating in the addition of DJ Wolfie, whose trance-oriented beats became the underpinnings of the group's sound. The addition of other regular musicians such as bassist John Avila (formerly of Oingo Boingo), ex-Supertramp drummer Steve Reid, and a full horn section was balanced by the introduction of dedicated carnival-style performers on the visual side: fire eaters, acrobats, Chinese lion dancers, and so on. Taking the Burning Man-inspired show on the road to a combination of benefit performances and corporate gigs like residencies at Universal theme parks, the Mutaytor released their debut CD, The Family Business, in 2004. The inevitable DVD, How to Change Civilians into Rock Stars, a three-disc set tracing the inception of the troupe and including a stand-alone music CD, followed in 2006.