The Cosmik Muffin Experience Bring The Zappa Love to Elmocambo on Valentines Day

On Friday, February 14 I made my way down to the Elmocambo to see a band. It was cold. It was snowy. But, after hearing about this band, i knew I had to go see them. I figured if this band can put the effort in to learn the extremely hard music of Frank Zappa, they were worth the trek. And man, was i impressed.

The Cosmic Muffin Experience is an eight-piece band from Toronto that performs the music of Frank Zappa. To be fair, to say they just perform music is an understatement. They are extremely entertaining as well. At the core, the band features a father/son/nephew combo with band leader Scott Goodman on keys and vocals (who at one point switched to guitar), his son drummer Jake Goodman (who at one point switched to vocals), and nephew Zach Tennan on guitar (who at one point awitched to drums and keys). The band also features the amazing singing and showmanship of frontwomen
Jessica Faith and Jodie Katz, who, from the top of the show, kept people entertained with their delivery, talent, humour, and good vibes. The lineup is rounded out by guitarist Steve Yacht, keyboardist Anton Helman and bassist Steve Himel, who all jump in on vocals.

The house was packed with Zappa die-hards who, from the beginning of the show until the end, had smiles on their faces. There were a lot of sing-alongs and appreciation for what this band was laying down on that stage. And let me be clear – Frank Zappa’s songs are not easy. They are some of the most complicated rock songs ever written. And this band played them with ease. They have spent a lot of time in the practice room.

They rifled through such classics like Apostraphe, Cosmic Debris, Dirty Love, Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow, Joes Garage and I’m The Slime while also throwing in deeper cuts like Harder Than Your Husband, Carolina Hard Core Extacy and What’s The Ugliest Part of Your Body. Their delivery was unique, switching up the vocalists and rotating instruments. They did the songs justice but made them their own as well. Everyone there was extremely entertained and impressed.

The family aspect of the band is also really cool, in my opinion. I love seeing things like that. It’s heartwarming. Even mom Penny was involved – running the socials, taking videos, and promoting her boys. She’s been keeping on top of me to see when the review comes out also. They’re excited because its their first. I hope they like it.

I am a tough critic, especially when it comes to Frank Zappa. But i highly recommend checking these guys out if you are a fan of Frank or if you just want to see a cool band doing intricate music that they love to play.