moira smiley & VOCO (LA)

moira smiley & VOCO is a visionary blend of voices – redefining harmony singing with the power and physicality of folksong, the avant-garde fearlessness of Bela Bartok and the delicious, vaudevillian accompaniment of cello, banjo, accordion and body percussion. Smiley leads an ensemble of extraordinary musicians who share a passion for spreading powerful, emotional music with lush four-part vocal harmony and instrumentation  Original improvisation-built songs steeped in Appalachia and Eastern Europe. Named #1 a cappella group in the US in 2007, VOCO is the energy of street singing and the elegance of a string quartet. Featured in Dirty Linen Magazine and on nationwide on NPR’s “Harmonia,” VOCO is sweet, hard-driving Americana mixed with crooked eastern European dance and dissonance. It’s all rounded out with body-stompin’ percussive movement and joyous, magnificent, hair-raising harmonies – music that mourns and dances at the same time.