Biography
Jeff Tripoli is an American musician raised in Syracuse, New York and has been performing drums, percussion and voice for over 30 years. He started making a living, playing in the clubs of Central New York, at age 17.
His drumming reflects a wide background of independent musical influences. On the road and in the studio, Tripoli has performed with many groups of various styles including Rock, Funk, Blues, Soul, Alternative, Bluegrass, Zydeco, Americana, Celtic, Folk and World. At the root of his dynamic framework resides the passion to provide fresh rhythms and artistic perspective.
Tripoli has toured professionally for over 15 years throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. He has also performed at several major music festivals including Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, Great Blue Heron Music Festival, Fingerlakes Grassroots Festival, Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival and The Dublin Ohio Celtic Festival.
Since 2015, Tripoli has performed with the Canadian Celtic folk rockers, The Town Pants, with tours spanning many major cities including Honolulu, Vancouver, Buffalo, Toronto, Chicago, Dallas and Dublin. Jeff also appears on The Town Pant's latest album, Something To Say, released in 2018.
The Town Pants combine aspects of Irish traditional, folk-rock and roots-Americana. With decades worth of headlining Roots and Celtic festivals to selling out nights at rock venues, The Town Pants own brand of Celtic-Roots-Rock spans six studio albums and two live albums, backed up with a legendary live show that’s garnered them fans from New York to Norway.
In 2021, Jeff began studies with renowned Los Angeles based drummer and percussionist, Butch Norton (Lucinda Williams, Eels, Tracy Chapman, Fiona Apple, Rufus Wainwright). Tripoli's mentorship with Norton covers many aspects of drum set and percussion composition. Several points of focus include groove, feel, creativity, active listening skills, improvisation, recording technique and critical self awareness.
Jeff's first full length solo album, Wabi Sabi, offers in his unusual manner a wide variety of original compositions taking you on a journey through musical improvisations while experimenting with new sonic landscapes. Personal expressions of psychedelic rhythms and musical collaborations are laid out in a pure and unfiltered form, revealing Tripoli’s deep explorations into found sounds and home made instruments.
Wabi Sabi captures some of Tripoli's finest and most detailed efforts with special guest appearances by Butch Norton, Jeff Tortora (Blue Man Group) and Griffin Brady (The Slyboots Circus). Furthermore this record also features the beautiful audio mixing of Jeff Moleski (Smashing Pumpkins).
In 2022, Tripoli connected with Front & Main, a Soul Rock band based in the crossroads of Upstate New York. Collaborators Michael Wu and Paul Shotwell have gathered a slew of A-list musicians from across the region to bring their original compositions to life. With songs that range in influence from across the rock spectrum; ballads and upbeat rockers taking inspiration from multiple artists from classic rock to modern rock - all overlaid with Shotwell’s smoky, soulful vocals.
Jeff currently performs with The Probables. An Americana group hailing from the rolling hills of Western New York, where their distinctive “Folkana-Roots-Rock” brand of music was born in 2016. Since that time, they have built a devoted, multi-demographic fanbase deriving from the strength of their fiery live performances.
Formed initially as a string band fronted by veteran performer and songwriter Steve Johnson, the band’s sound has since expanded to include a powerhouse rhythm section consisting of drummer Jeff Tripoli and electric bassist Jassen Wilber. Rounding out the lineup is mandolin maestro and vocalist Adam Mckillip, and multi-instrumentalist Matt Gronquist on fiddle, electric guitar and Hammond Organ. The result is a multi-faceted soundscape infused with elements of Folk, Rock, Reggae, Bluegrass, and Funk, with Johnson’s introspective and infectious songwriting serving as the unifying element.
Jeff's upcoming solo release, "Perspectives", is set to be his next record and will include 10 original percussion compositions. Each tune will feature a special guest collaborator as well as an accompanying music video. This full length album brings new additions of Tripoli's homemade instruments and found sounds. Everything from mixing bowls to spoons, soup cans to paint cans, groan tubes to toy drums, pickle jar lids to bicycle racks.... EVEN THE KITCHEN SINK!