Eric Krasno, Cory Henry and Robert “Sput” Searight Form The Heavyweights for Relix Sessions Vinyl Release and New Live Dates
The Heavyweights (Eric Krasno, Cory Henry and Robert “Sput” Searight), photo by Kaelan Barowsky
Eric Krasno, Cory Henry and Robert “Sput” Searight have joined forces to form The Heavyweights on a new Relix Sessions vinyl release. Captured during their debut staging at Los Angeles’ The Mint on July 29, the supergroup of funk firebrands’ first recording features ripping takes on iconic songs, reinvented in their distinctive emerging language of guitar, keyboard and drums. The trio’s live recording is only the beginning of a promising run, extended today with the announcement of new dates in 2026.
With the pooled prestige of Krasno, Henry and Searight, The Heavyweights collectively represent Soulive, Lettuce, Snarky Puppy, Ghost-Note and more–a veritable dream team of today’s funk and fusion pathbreakers. But together at The Mint, the trio created a sound greater than the sum of its parts, reaching beyond their roots to incorporate hits of classic rock, rapid-fire jazz and lush R&B. The band’s 11-track repertoire, represented in full on the live album, featured instantly identifiable tracks like Jimi Hendrix’s “Hey Joe,” The Beatles’ “Get Back,” Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come,” Al Green’s “What a Wonderful Thing Love Is” and others from Stevie Wonder, Cannonball Adderley, Marvin Gaye, WAR, Roy Ayers Ubiquity and Billy Cobham, plus Henry’s own “Miss Purty.”
The Heavyweights’ premiere performance, mixed by Ben Burget and mastered by Jesse Lauter, is preserved in a triple LP-gatefold record, set to ship on Dec. 15 and available to pre-order now exclusively via relix.shop. Alongside today’s release announcement, the trio unveiled a series of three performances next year; they’ll take the stage at Garcia’s Chicago for two nights on Feb. 13 and 14, followed by a standalone performance at Brooklyn Bowl on March 6.
