Catching Up With: Nik Greeley & the Operators Reflect On 2020 and Release Celebratory Track, "Can't Explain"
Nik Greeley, photo by Kuf Knotz
Nik Greeley & The Operators is a staple Philly funk outfit, and you’ve likely seen one or all of their members groove around the city at one point or another. With a presence at Ardmore Music Hall, 118 North, and Funk n’ Bowl, the funk and soul scene is one of Philly music’s most thriving facets, and The Operators are most certainly at the center of it.
The band just dropped their first track of the year, “Can’t Explain,” and it’s a celebratory taste of what 2021 hopefully feels like. This is a big song, and the instrumentation relies heavily on a building brass section through the choruses, infectious and filtered guitar lines that demand to be danced to, and evocative, anthemic vocals. This song is going to wake you up within the first moments of pressing play. It’s a refreshing listen on my end because I’m typically not sent true funk music, but I listened to “Can’t Explain” for hours over the weekend. I cleaned my apartment to it. I love the lyrics and how they detail an experience with a person that likely everyone’s been through. He and co-writer Barney Cortez killed it. He explains it all below.
It was really nice to finally catch up with Nik Greeley after working remotely on a handful of different projects through quarantine but never actually meeting in real life (and that’s my rapport with a lot of people now). He and I related to 2020 in a lot of similar ways; he has a lot to celebrate despite the industry’s pause. If you watched any live streams from Ardmore Music Hall last year, and I’m sure you did, then you can thank him for that! After this is all over, you will most definitely be catching me at an Operators gig at Funk n’ Bowl because my god do I miss dancing.
Check out my conversation with Nik Greeley below and stream “Can’t Explain” at the bottom of the page. But read the whole thing first ;)
Can you give me some backstory about the song? What does the track mean to you?
Nik Greeley: I think the lyrics subconsciously come from my love of the "chase". The girls I have fallen for hardest in my life were always the ones who were mysterious, independent, self-assertive ladies who certainly played hard to get. There was actually a night a few years ago where I asked Barney Cortez to come hang out and jam and I showed him this song. He actually helped me craft a lot of the lyrics and helped me shape the song, and I don't think he knows that. He's one of my favorite songwriters, ever. I've looked up to him for a long time as an artist, including when he played in my favorite Philly band ever, Nico's Gun. Thank you Barnez.
I know The Operators has gotten creative with remote recording — was this song another product of quarantine? Or were you able to all get together?
NG: The song has been around in our live performances for a little while now, but the recording itself was all done remotely with all of us at home recording our parts and sending them to Joe (our drummer as well as a member of Muscle Tough). I can't overstate enough how huge Joe has been in my life. As a friend, bandmate, and a trusted producer, he always does a really top-notch job of producing and engineering these tracks, whether that's with The Operators or his other respected projects. Very lucky to have him around, he is truly the special sauce.
What did the last year look like for you? I know you have a hand in projects with Ardmore Music Hall and Funk n’ Bowl. How did they change with the pandemic?
NG: I feel really fortunate that despite the dramatic change in both my creative and work life, I had some really special moments during 2020 that wouldn't have happened otherwise. I am so proud of what our AMH team has been able to accomplish and deliver during this time, especially with the live streams we've been doing, and creating a safe/outside the box way of presenting live music with the Tailgate Takeout Series (here’s a snippet from one of those gigs with Kuf Knotz and Christine Elise) that we did this past summer at 118 North in Wayne. We've got some really amazing things in store that I'm excited to share with everybody, including our newly renovated room and some really great live stream show announcements on the way. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and we're extremely thankful for all the support and love we've gotten from the community and our loyal regulars during all this.
The Operators was able to play a really special gig on the roof of The Pharmacy at the beginning of September, which was our first live performance together as a band since January 2020. It was a dream come true to perform like that, and to see people from the neighborhood coming out of their houses to watch, and the real happiness it brought all of us that day. I have to give a huge thanks to Matty Schenck (PowerCycle Streams/recent WXPN streams) who is an amazing engineer/producer who handled the sound and the stream production, and Gary the owner of The Pharmacy who not only allowed us to play that day, but graciously opened his doors and roof to host Johnny Showcase, Muscle Tough (Voter Registration Rally), Party Muscles, Echo Kid, Heaven Man, Slomo Sapiens, and Tioga. It was really special, and I was so happy to be able to help facilitate and contribute to bringing all those great bands to play live again, too.
We were also able to continue the funk over at Funk n’ Bowl at North Bowl with a string of really fun pop-up outdoor shows that we did in the lot. Similar to 118N, we took reservations and had tables set up to keep everyone spaced and asked everyone to stay masked up. Before the pandemic happened, Funk n’ Bowl was my Sunday church and my Cheers all at the same time. The music, the vibe, and the people are just the best, and it's been such a pleasure working with Eli, Oron, and Jon who I consider to be brothers. I really can't wait till we're able to reunite again for our Sunday Funday, I will probably cry joyful funky tears that we are all back together again.
I spent a lot of time writing, getting creative, and getting back to my craft when it came to practicing singing and playing guitar again. I have to give a lot of love and thanks to my buddy Jeremy Savo, who has been a really great music teacher for me during this time, and someone I have such a blast working with him both learning and being creative. I'm really proud of the tracks we made together: "Stuck In My House" and "Have A Funky Little Christmas" which included our very talented pals Ethan Feinstein, Wil Schade, and Jonathan Colman.
And obviously, I am so thrilled at how great the Philly Holiday Album turned out!!! Seriously, such a great experience to be involved with so many friends and artists I admire, and to raise the amount of money we did for Toys for Tots & Save Our Stages was the cherry on top. Many thanks to John Pritchard, you, and Jimmy Scantron for crushing it on all fronts, and everyone went above and beyond to deliver really great tunes for a great cause. I will be playing that album every year at Christmas, forever <3
What do you hope this year looks like for music? What do you want to accomplish?
NG: I can't wait to share the rest of our new tunes as the year goes on, I'm really proud of how far this band has come over time, and to be able to continue to play with my best friends makes it that much better. Stay tuned for details on what will either be an EP or album that will be on the way later this year. Plenty of videos and plenty of good vibes and fun on the way. And just wait till we properly hit the stage again. If you thought the energy and fun were already high, we're about to kick things up a whole other notch, and I cannot wait to experience that sensation with a room full of music lovers and friends again. I can't wait for what's in store for both The Operators & AMH, and I couldn't be more grateful for this incredible music and arts community. Philly is the best, period.
You can listen to “Can’t Explain” below or anywhere else you find music.
Credits:
Drums - Joe Baldacci
Bass - Kenny Shumski
Guitar - Zach LoPresti
Guitar - Zack Smith
Keys/Organ - Sam Gutman
Saxophone - Jason O’ Mara
Trumpet - Matt Salazar
Trombone - Nick Lombardelli
Produced, mixed, and mastered by Joe Baldacci
Music written by NG & The Operators
Lyrics by Nik Greeley & Barney Cortez