MixTape Debuts Big Bottom At Sharkey's And Turned It Up To 11 Spinal Tap Style

By Joanie Cox Henry

I have a fantasy list of songs I've wished I could see performed live. "Big Bottom" by Spinal Tap was at the top of that list. Last night, MixTape made that dream a reality. Funkmaster Fernando Santomaggio took lead vocals and rocked the bass with the tenacity of Nigel Tufnel himself. He even sported Nigel's iconic skeleton t-shirt from the film—because when you're summoning the spirit of Britain's loudest band, you dress the part from bones to bass strings.

Mike Elmore and Randy LaPierre were also working their magic on bass. And Steve Kaminer was laying down synth bass that rattled fillings loose from molars three zip codes away. You can really never have enough bass in my opinion. Because if some is good and more is better, then too much is just right.

The whole room became one giant subwoofer, and every human ribcage became sympathetic vibration. Somewhere, Nigel Tufnel's amplifier went to twelve just out of respect. It was truly a thrilling sight and sound to behold.

And then there was Paco Camara on drums—and yes, it was his birthday, which feels almost too perfect, too Tap-esque to be real but it was! The man kept time like he was personally responsible for holding the space-time continuum together through sheer pocket alone. While these divine musicians plunked and slapped and thrummed their way through bass history, the band's ultra hot front woman Lindsay Giova sizzled with a bootylicious dance to accompany the epic tune.

"Considering they are a fictional band, Spinal Tap's influence on every musician who has seen the film is most decidedly NON fiction!" Santomaggio says. "Every musician—every band, has had at least one Spinal Tap moment. Most conversations between musicians involve at least one Spinal Tap quote—so much so in my case that I was completely gutted the first time I saw Christopher Guest as anyone other than Nigel Tufnel. I wanted so much to believe that he was real!"

Santomaggio was totally stoked to finally make his vision of performing Spinal Tap's "Big Bottom" a reality. It also feels right on time with the recent release of Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.

"All these years later it was quite special to finally get to TAP into that part of me," Santomaggio reveals. "And pay homage to something so important to me...so important to us! In the words of (not so) immortal Mick Shrimpton, "As long as there's you know, sex and drugs, I can do without the rock and roll."

MixTape has often been publicly praised for being a band that's not afraid to be be bold and add some spice and always a few surprises to their set lists. This band never disappoints or ceases to amaze me. Their cover of "Big Bottom" drove me out of my mind. How could I leave this behind?