bio

So, what IS Uncle Bonsai? Imagine what might happen if Tim Burton and Edward Gorey hijacked the Andrews Sisters en route to a Stephen Sondheim festival with The Beatles and Tom Lehrer in the sidecar; you'd get Seattle super- harmonizers Uncle Bonsai. With just three voices and an acoustic guitar, Bonsai presents an often dizzying vocal array of intricate harmony. Their songs, dark and hilarious at times, just as often delight with moments of great insight and beauty. The trio aligns itself with the under-achiever, the dejected, the outsider, the black sheep. Densely-packed lyrics fly by in a whir at times, and take a skewed stance on topics such as first-world problems, the creation of the universe, the afterlife, and, of course, holidays with the family. Uncle Bonsai's acoustic folk-pop songs are almost one-act plays or short stories, resisting strict pop, folk, or singer-songwriter categories. Their songs focus on the passing of time, the passing of genes, and the passing of pets - the truth of everything seemingly buried somewhere under the family tree.
Now in its forty-fourth year, the group has nine recordings, a reversible/hard cover book for parents (and their kids), and recently premiered an all-new show, “Seven Sins, Seven Wonders, Seven Dwarfs,” featuring a 25-song song cycle. On September 28, 2024, the group performed with co-founding member Arni Adler for the last time but, to quote Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, "the more things change, the more they stay the same! And so, in May 2025, the group returned with new songs and a new member, the amazing Kat Bula! The group's brand new release, "UNCLE BONSAI LIVE: selections from 7 Sins, 7 Wonders, 7 Dwarfs - a song cycle" is being released on September 20th. They'll be doing shows throughout the Northwest in Fall/Winter 2025, followed by national tours in 2026.