Members from two of Jackson Hole’s favorite bands have come together to form a supergroup
As I drove into Victor it seemed particularly quiet, even for a Tuesday night in the off-season. I parked in front of a house on a side street and climbed out of my truck. Echoes of Marcy Playground’s 1997 jam “Sex and Candy” wafted out of the open garage door into the cool autumn air. I was at Sghetti lead singer Bri Moore’s house, and she and the rest of the band were inside rehearsing for their upcoming Halloween show at the Knotty Pine. For the last couple of years Sghetti has brought a unique sound to the music scene in Jackson Hole. They’ve played everything from fancy weddings to Gaper Day shows at the Mangy Moose. If you haven’t seen Sghetti at least once, odds are you’re living under a rock.
I cracked open the door to the garage and a blast of heat hit my face from the wood stove in the corner. The music swirled around me as I took in the quirky decorations scattered around the garage. Sghetti is made up of eight members: two percussionists, a keyboard player, a guitar player, a bass player, a saxophone player, a trumpet player, and a singer. These musicians work day jobs as ski techs, bike mechanics, cooks, wildlife tour guides, and ski patrollers. One even owns a handmade hat business. The band formed during the pandemic when members of Sneaky Pete and the Secret Weapons and Rude Noodle started having late-night garage jams. They quickly realized they had similar sounds that worked well together. The two bands became interchangeable when Rude Noodle covered a gig Sneaky Pete couldn’t play. In the past year, they have combined forces into one big super-group: Sghetti.
As a ski town band, the members of Sghetti are skilled purveyors of après tunes. What does après mean–aside from being the French word for after–to those hired to set the mood for it? “It’s how my mom described smoking pot to me,” joked Sam, the bass player. “Like when your body is really tired, but your mind is still awake.” Après is about keeping the good times going after the shredding is done. It’s about spending time with your friends after a great day out together.
Anyone living in a ski town knows it can be tough. Life is expensive, you have to deal with tourists, and it’s dark and cold for much of the year. Supplying live music that’s catered to locals is one way that Sghetti works to keep the ski town dream alive. The members of the band have a cumulative 66 years of living in Teton County between them. Working seasonal outdoor industry jobs allows them to get out and shred as much as possible. Music is their creative outlet and a way to give something back to the community. They hope to inspire their audience to keep life light and have fun. “When the crowd is dancing, we play better.” I found myself moving to the music as embers crackled in the stove and the band played on.
– IL