If you have not made it out to Funk ’n Waffles on a Sunday night, here is a good reason to start. Denver progressive bluegrass quartet Magoo hits Syracuse on July 12 — doors at 7:00 PM, show at 8:00 — and given how quickly they have been filling small venues, getting a ticket now is the smarter move.
About Magoo
Magoo is a four-piece out of Denver: Dylan Flynn on dobro, Erik Hill on guitar and vocals, Courtlyn Bills on mandolin and vocals, and A. Denton Turner on upright bass. Progressive bluegrass in the best sense — traditional structure, jam-band energy, intricate arrangements, and three-part harmonies that lock in tight.
Flynn won the 2024 RockyGrass Dobro Competition. Hill finished runner-up in the 2024 RockyGrass Flatpicking Contest. The band took first at the UllrGrass Band Competition and won Clash of the Strings, with a runner-up finish at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival Band Competition. They have sold out Globe Hall in Denver and the Blue Room at Third Man Records in Nashville. A 200-person room is not a guarantee.
There is an Upstate New York thread here, too: guitarist Erik Hill grew up near Albany and went to SUNY New Paltz before the music took him west. This Syracuse stop is not random geography.
Their debut album, What a Life (February 27, 2026), is the real entry point — ten tracks of extended improvisations and three-part harmonies, mastered by GRAMMY-winning engineer David Glasser and featuring bluegrass legend Sam Bush on “Angel of Telluride.”
The Venue
Funk ’n Waffles sits at 307 S. Clinton St. in Syracuse — a 200-capacity bar, restaurant, and music venue. Doors open at 7:00 PM. This is an 18+ show, so bring your ID. For more shows in the area, browse the Syracuse / Central NY events calendar.
Tickets & Pricing
Tickets start at $18.22. Given how Magoo has been moving through smaller rooms lately, do not sit on this one.