Artists:Mad Tea Party

Uke-abilly. Retro-Pop. Rock 'n' Roll.

Mad Tea Party brews up roots music, retro-pop and rock ‘n’ roll to create a fresh and intoxicating sound. Ami Worthen and Jason Krekel serve up an exciting live show to music lovers thirsty for upbeat, original refreshment. Quirky harmonies glide over electrified ukulele, juke-joint guitar, scratchy fiddle and pulsing foot percussion. Songs about love, life, death and dancing are steeped in raw rockabilly with shreds of doo wop and devilish blues. Mad Tea Party concocts a musical recipe that is familiar yet unusual.

The All Music Guide describes Mad Tea Party as “Americana for the modern generation. Shreds of ragtime, tatters of R&B, touches of blues, bursts of rockabilly, slivers of C&W, tinges of hillbilly hoe-downs, lashes of pop, snippets of rock, a feathering of folk, and even…the hurdy-gurdy sound of the circus."

Mad Tea Party’s amusing and sharp approach to an evolved brand of music makes them one-of-a-kind. Their sense of humor and irony appeals to savvy listeners who appreciate the band's cleverness and cheerful energy. Drink deep!

The Band

"Ami Worthen is a clever tunesmith with a social conscious, a devilish sense of humor…[and a] particularly inspired brand of ukulele playing" (Radio Memeworks). The Charleston Post & Courier said, "Worthen sang with a voice that seemed to exude sunshine. Clad in an orange dress and cowboy boots, she easily won the crowd with her delightful smile."

The dynamic and talented Jason Krekel sings and plays guitar, fiddle, and foot drums. “As Worthen strummed her ukulele, Krekel...performed an amazing ballet of musicianship nearby” (Post & Courier). The Charlotte Observer described his singing this way, "when Jason Krekel takes the lead, he lets it fly with loud abandon." Backstory

Mad Tea Party began as the solo project of songwriter Ami Worthen. Soon after, experienced multi-instrumentalist Jason Krekel joined her on vocals, guitar, and fiddle. The duo quickly caught the attention of the indie scene in their hometown of Asheville, NC. National Public Radio stations across the country began picking up their 2004 album 73% Post-Consumer Novelty. Lora Pendelton joined the band on bass later that year. The trio released Flying Saucers in 2005, also to great response on NPR stations. Mad Tea Party's critically acclaimed Big Top Soda Pop came out in October 2006. It was enthusiastically received at college and NPR stations nationwide, and even charted on the CMJ’s Top 200. Listeners on WNCW 88.7 FM voted Big Top Soda Pop the #2 regional release of 2006, and #54 of all releases for that year. Pendleton left the band at the time of the album's release, and bassist Joe Edel stepped in for a year.

The band returned to a high-energy duo format in late 2007. With Jason playing bass drum, snare, and high hat with his feet, and Ami plugging her ukulele into an amp, the band has developed a truly driving and danceable sound. Mad Tea Party has signed with Nine Mile Records for the Summer 2008 release of its next CD, Found a Reason..