Genre-defying super-band Snarky Puppy performs music from their 2023 Grammy-winning Empire Central.

After a decade of relentless touring and recording in all but complete obscurity, the Texas-bred/New York-based Snarky Puppy suddenly found itself held up by the press and public as a major figure in the jazz world.

As the category names for all five of the band’s Grammy awards would indicate (Best R&B Performance in 2014, Best Contemporary Instrumental Album in 2016, 2017, 2021, and 2023), Snarky Puppy isn’t exactly a jazz band. It’s not a fusion band, and it’s definitely not a jam band. It’s probably best to take Nate Chinen of The New York Times’ advice, as stated in an online discussion about the group, to “take them for what they are, rather than judge them for what they’re not.”