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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Fitz and the Tantrums refuse to stay in one place artistically

Fitz and the Tantrums. (Joseph Cultice)

Fitz and the Tantrums make party music in the purest sense of the term. Fronted by Michael Fitzpatrick, the Los Angeles six-piece specializes in upbeat, catchy pop gems that stack hooks on top of hooks. It’s no surprise that several of their songs have ended up in TV commercials.

The band, which performs at the Knitting Factory on Tuesday, formed eight years ago, a group of journeyman musicians who had previously been playing together in different iterations. During a recent phone interview, Tantrums keyboardist Jeremy Ruzumna says the group established a chemistry during its first jam session.

“We came into this band as seasoned players, so it was pretty instantaneous,” Ruzumna said. “It’s been written about, but it’s really true. It was one or two rehearsals and then we were booking shows. … I initially joined because Fitz had a commercial music business, and I was interested in getting into that. Ironically, I was trying to get off the road. What I didn’t know is that he was putting an end to that, and I ended up joining the band and being on the road for eight years.”

The band’s debut album, 2010’s “Pickin’ Up the Pieces,” was an unabashed love letter to the sounds of Motown and slick ’70s funk. It was followed by 2013’s “More Than Just a Dream,” which leaned toward the new wave pop movement of the ’80s. This third album, simply titled “Fitz and the Tantrums,” is a far more contemporary record, owing more to Calvin Harris than, say, Marvin Gaye.

“We definitely wanted to enter the modern era,” Ruzumna said. “The funny thing is when you’re a band, people tend to want you to sound the same album after album. And there are certain things you have to have – like, if we came out with an experimental jazz-fusion album, I don’t think anybody would listen to it.

“But I think all the elements we’re known for and that people like are present on all the albums. We’ve always wanted to make sure we’re not limiting ourselves. We could have made the same retro album over and over, and we probably would have kept our core fan base, but musicians evolve, and we didn’t want to be stuck in one thing.”

“Fitz and the Tantrums” is a shiny, glossy record, and it chugs along with the insistence of a wedding DJ trying to fill a dance floor. The retro Hammond organs that figured so prominently on the Tantrums’ earlier records have been replaced by synths, and while the R&B flavor of “Pickin’ Up the Pieces” is still there, it’s bolstered by nightclub beats. Even the album’s mid-tempo tracks sound like party jams.

“By the time we got around to making this album, we definitely had our live show in mind as we were recording,” Ruzumna said. “It was interesting to make decisions based on, ‘This is going to sound good live,’ or, ‘Will this vocal really translate?’ We couldn’t wait to hear audiences sing certain lines back to us. And on ‘HandClap,’ we just knew the clapping would be part of the audience participation.”

And when Fitzpatrick, better known as Fitz, and his co-lead vocalist Noelle Scaggs sing “I can make your hands clap,” it’s not so much a lyrical refrain as a call to action. The Tantrums’ high-energy live performances have become the band’s calling card, and Ruzumna has one of the best seats in the house at every show.

“I’ve become a little bit spoiled being in this band,” Ruzumna said. “Fitz and Noelle are so engaging, good at bringing the audience in, that when I go to shows and see singers not engaging with the crowd or not saying much, I start to get mad. It’s like a game of basketball – they grab the ball and they throw it to us in the band, and we just take it from there.”