chris bullock + justin stanton quartet

When Snarky Puppy bandmates Chris Bullock and Justin Stanton—who've spent countless hours together since meeting in Texas in 2005—decided to bring their unique songwriting visions to Rio de Janeiro in 2023, they discovered something magical: Justin's compositions tended toward lighter sounds and feelings, while Chris's carried darker, sometimes sinister hues. The result became "Claro e Escuro" (Portuguese for "light and dark"), an album that celebrates the vibrancy of Brazilian culture while showcasing two decades of friendship, strong working rapport, and mutual respect between these five-time Grammy Award-winning multi-instrumentalists, composers, and producers. Now these musical globetrotters bring their light-and-dark conversation to Asheville, anchored by two of the Blue Ridge's finest rhythm architects. Quinn Sternberg doesn't just play bass—he becomes the gravitational center around which musical solar systems orbit, his four strings serving as the invisible force that holds melody and rhythm in perfect harmonic balance, building rhythmic foundations so sturdy that horn players can stretch toward the stratosphere. Ryan Ptasnik brings his jazz-trained versatility from Wyoming high school bands to Central Asian opera houses to Asheville's vibrant scene, proving that the best drummers create the adaptable foundation that allows wildly diverse musical visions to flourish. After Chris spent three months immersed in Rio's music culture, he brought Justin back for a week of tracking sessions where different configurations of musicians shifted the music's feel and groove—lending fire and spontaneity that now comes to life with Sternberg and Ptasnik as the rhythmic heart. Expect an evening where Asheville's own Chris Bullock (that's right—he started his musical obsession right here with Beach Boys and hip-hop cassettes) teams with Tennessee's Justin Stanton to prove that the most compelling musical conversations happen when saxophone meets trumpet, keyboards meet synthesis, light meets dark, and two of Asheville's most intuitive rhythm players make it all swing.