Queen Kong and Kallisto

QUEEN KONG (from Toronto), led by drummer and composer Lorie Wolf, seamlessly blends the Klemzer Jewish idiom with jazz, funk and rock to explore new sounds and ideas. Queen Kong’s aim is to push the boundaries of what can be considered Jewish/Klezmer music. The results are melodies both familiar and new, harmonies that take the listener on a trip from the sacred to the profane, and contemplative compositions that are complex yet groovy as hell. 

Queen Kong’s will be touring in support of their 2nd studio recording "Mitsve Tants", which will feature modern arrangements of Hasidic Jewish melodies from a collection of songs that are sung to a Jewish bride and accompanied by guests’ fervorous dancing. The purpose of this ceremony is to bring joy to the bride, which is serious business in the Hasidic world. Dancing before the bride has been part of Jewish communities from the fourth century to modern day, and different melodies can be found all over towns (or shtetls) in Eastern Europe. The dance is usually a highly charged emotional moment, wherein the dancer prays silently for the couple's success in life. These melodies have been arranged using a variety of styles such as jazz, funk, rock and improv, and draw inspiration from John Zorn's Masada and Bar Kokhba projects.

Kallisto is a Montreal-based, composer-led ensemble creating original progressive rock rooted in folk-derived modal traditions. Led by clarinetist and composer Jossée MacInnis, the band draws inspiration from klezmer music and Anatolian Turkish psychedelic rock, using their modal languages as compositional material rather than repertoire. These influences are transformed through through-composed structures, amplified textures, and a collective approach to form.

Kallisto’s music places the clarinet at the center of an amplified rock ensemble, shifting the instrument into a role more often associated with lead guitar or voice. Psychedelic intensity, trance-like repetition, and dynamic contrast coexist with deliberate architectural development, allowing pieces to unfold with both physical momentum and structural clarity. With a growing body of original work and a second album in development for 2026, Kallisto continues to refine a sound that is distinctive, contemporary, and rooted in deep modal thinking.