Ms. Mack & the Daddies

The honorific “Ms.,” to me, implies an air of warm matriarchal authority. Fitting for the titular Ms. Mack, whose gravitational stage presence demands you listen up. The charismatic vocalist – fronting the five year running universalist funk-soul unit known especially to patrons of the Skylark Lounge and Sagebrush – belts big, but also sinks into the grooves, leaving room-to-move for her “Daddies.” The horn-inflected group’s sound anchors upon the body-moving bass of Lauren Michelle, over which Charles Hunter’s keys and Leland Isley’s guitar work shines. A perfect fit for a church night get-down at Antone’s. – Kevin Curtin