Fishtank Ensemble to perform in Sisters

The band Fishtank Ensemble will play The Belfry on Friday, March 22.

Fishtank Ensemble was born in Oakland, CA, in 2005 when violinist Fabrice Martinez was visiting opera singer and fellow violin player Ursula Knudson after 10 years of living in a mule-drawn caravan collecting and learning various musics of Eastern Europe.

The band first really clicked at the home of guitarist Doug "El Douje" Smolens. Doug's interest in Fabrice's many styles of European music was second only to his love and devotion to Spanish Flamenco, which he had learned during half-a-year spent in the caves of Granada, Spain. Upright slap bass virtuoso Djordje Stijepovic, from Belgrade, Serbia, joined in 2007, while continuing to play with such rock & roll greats as Lemmy (from Motorhead) and Deke Dickerson. New member drummer Matty Alger brings an amazing rhythm and a dancing groove to the group's already feverish live performance. New Yorker Alger has previously played with the likes of Eminem, Esperanza Spalding and Rihanna.

After several years on the road in the U.S. and Europe, Fishtank Ensemble has a worldly perspective as unique as their music. Working outside of record labels and the mainstream music scene, they have flourished, building up a fiercely loyal following who are awaiting their third studio release, Edge of the World, due this spring.

The road-hardy troubadours of soulful and eclectic Gypsy, Balkan, Turkish, Greek, hot jazz and their own original music have found their calling in creating a musical community wherever they travel throughout the world. At festivals they unplug at night and roam the camps, kicking off spontaneous jams and sharing their tunes. In Europe, after the show is over, expect to find them playing and dancing until dawn.

Featuring hot upright bass, devilishly fast violin, thumping guitar, versatile vocals, musical saw and heartbeat percussion, Fishtank Ensemble plays 21st century dance music with one foot in the past and one foot in the present, all looking toward the future.

Their debut CD, Samurai Over Serbia, was released in 2007. Their second CD, Woman in Sin, came out in 2010. Edge of the World is due out in 2013.

Showtime is 8 p.m. The Belfry is located at 302 E. Main Ave.