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Artwork for Schecky's Jam Bands
Schecky's Jam Bands · Yesterday · 11 min

The App Never Closes - RAQ

What do you get when a Burlington, Vermont jam quartet names themselves after a biblical man thrown into a fiery furnace, records their best album at Trey Anastasio's personal studio, and describes their own band as "an app running in the background of your phone that never fully closes"? You get RAQ — one of the most technically ferocious and consistently surprising acts the Northeast jam scene has ever produced, and a band that Relix Magazine called capable of "dropping jaws with hyperkinetic improvisational splendor." In this episode, Schecky traces how RAQ went from Shadraq to a Jammy Award nomination, from Burlington clubs to Bonnaroo and High Sierra, from a 2007 hiatus to periodic returns that fans describe as being like finding a four-leaf clover. We dig into the full story of recording Ton These at Trey Anastasio's Barn in Vermont, break down what makes RAQ's three-album catalog the right entry point for new listeners — starting with Carbohydrates Are the Enemy and any live recording from their legendary Schubas run — and make the case for why this is the band you need to catch the next time the app opens. Subscribe, drop a comment telling us your most memorable RAQ show or the first time their "ultra-loose and infectious" live energy got you, and share this episode with any prog-rock or jam fan who hasn't yet found their new favorite Burlington quartet.

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What do you get when a Burlington, Vermont jam quartet names themselves after a biblical man thrown into a fiery furnace, records their best album at Trey Anastasio's personal studio, and describes their own band as "an app running in the background of your phone that never fully closes"? You get RAQ — one of the most technically ferocious and consistently surprising acts the Northeast jam scene has ever produced, and a band that Relix Magazine called capable of "dropping jaws with hyperkinetic improvisational splendor."

In this episode, Schecky traces how RAQ went from Shadraq to a Jammy Award nomination, from Burlington clubs to Bonnaroo and High Sierra, from a 2007 hiatus to periodic returns that fans describe as being like finding a four-leaf clover. We dig into the full story of recording Ton These at Trey Anastasio's Barn in Vermont, break down what makes RAQ's three-album catalog the right entry point for new listeners — starting with Carbohydrates Are the Enemy and any live recording from their legendary Schubas run — and make the case for why this is the band you need to catch the next time the app opens.

Subscribe, drop a comment telling us your most memorable RAQ show or the first time their "ultra-loose and infectious" live energy got you, and share this episode with any prog-rock or jam fan who hasn't yet found their new favorite Burlington quartet.

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