Written by Violet Taylor and Ally Mediratta
Photographed and Videoed by Regina Skinner
If you're ever in downtown Menlo Park on a Tuesday night or a Sunday morning, chances are you've seen The Almost All Khaki Band, a student-led jazz group, playing classics in the middle of a closed-off Santa Cruz Avenue. With band members from several local schools, including M-A, Sequoia, the Menlo School, and Hillview Middle School, Almost All Khakis reimagines the quintessential high school band in a number of ways–from its dedication to classics to its community of fans spanning all ages.
"It was kind of a COVID thing," said M-A senior Ben Witeck, who is one of the band's leaders. Witeck explained that he founded the band with M-A senior Connor Lowand and Menlo senior Colin Skinner after reaching out to a middle school music teacher who had gotten them gigs in the past. Still, the dream of forming a jazz combo–a large enough group of jazz musicians to play each part of a song–had been on their minds even before the pandemic. "Colin, Connor, and I have been playing together ever since our Hillview jazz band days, and after jamming in Connor’s garage for years, we decided to take our music to the community."
As the outdoor dining scene grew by necessity last summer, the Menlo Park restaurant Bistro Vida offered the band a recurring gig beginning in August of 2020.
According to Skinner and Witeck, Low sends out a set list a couple of nights prior to the show, and the band members look it over. Typically, the list includes a mix of the 18-20 songs the band cycles through, though some pieces require workshopping or rehearsal, like when M-A senior Charlie Smith lends her vocals. In all, Witeck said that the band has only held practice about five times.
As for the shows, they last for up to two and a half hours. "The Tuesday gig is especially tiring. It's a school night and it's dark. Sometimes you don't get a lot of tips. And there's only four players. So there's a lot more attention on the individual," said Witeck.
Marco Lenzi, an M-A junior, said that during live shows, improvisation is key. "My favorite part of playing in the band is riffing the drummer, Reese [Hsu, a student at Sequoia High School], behind everyone. Just because we get to mess around and be creative. And it's a good creative outlet during the pandemic."
Low attributed the group’s musical success during quarantine to their routine, saying, “If you just get out and do it every single week, it just makes you such a better musician.”
In addition to support from family and friends, the band has several regulars who make a point of seeing their shows week after week. Often there is a scattered crowd, mostly families, on the sidewalks bordering the band's performance space. "Every week we have an elderly couple who come up and compliment us. They're like, 'I haven't heard live music in forever,'" said Skinner.
Low added, “There’s just so much mutual respect that goes around for everybody; there’s really nothing more you can ask for in a band."
Watch one of Almost All Khaki Band's Sunday shows here: