Marco Benevento’s new record moves like a film score written for a film no one has made yet. Jazz improvisation drops into reggae pocket, then lifts into orchestral swell, then dissolves into something that might be psych-pop or might just be a very good feeling. GLERA, his Big Crown Records debut, has been out six weeks. Catching him live right now, at Maverick Concert Hall in Woodstock, with Dave Dreiwitz alongside him, is the kind of timing you don’t ignore.
About the Show
Benevento headlines this Maverick Friday Nights date on Friday, September 4, with Dreiwitz billed as very special guest. The two have a musical history that runs deeper than any single band credit: Dreiwitz is the longtime bassist for Ween, a founding member of Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, and has played in Benevento’s live trio for years. The ticket page puts it simply — he brings “groove, grit, and a playful virtuosity on bass, trumpet, and beyond.” When two musicians know each other this well, the improvisational ceiling goes way up.
GLERA (Big Crown Records, July 24, 2026) is a 14-track album that Benevento spent three years developing privately, drawing inspiration from Italian film scores and melody. His music has long been described as connecting “the dots in the vast space between LCD Soundsystem and Leon Russell, pulsating with dance rock energy, but with smart, earthy songwriting” — and the new record deepens that range. Relix called him “a virtuosic keyboardist, composer, bandleader, and weaver of patterns that flaunt rhythm and tone to inspire feeling.” The album moves through jazz, soul, reggae, and psych-pop. Tracks like “Houdini” pull toward the dancefloor while “Turandot,” featuring vocalist Marianne Mirage, lands somewhere between Portishead and Serge Gainsbourg. NPR Music praised his ability to balance “the thrust of rock, the questing of jazz and the experimental ecstasy of jam.” Six weeks out from release, this show is about as close to a live premiere as you’re going to find this fall.
Venue & Logistics
Maverick Concert Hall sits at 120 Maverick Rd in Woodstock, NY, in the Hudson Valley. Maverick Concerts carries the distinction of being the oldest continuous summer music festival in America, with over a century of world-class music in those woods. The historic outdoor pavilion holds 400. The show runs 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Tickets
Reserved hall seats are $55/$35; partial-obstruction seats are $30/$27. General admission outdoors is $20, with student tickets at $10. Buy tickets.