Mike Dillon has forged one of the more unique paths in music; as an all-around gifted vibrist/percussionist, he’s led – or been in involved with – music that skirts the fringes of jazz, tossing in music forms from all over the country and all over the world in a carefree manner. His outlandish, fearless attitude is what ties all this together.
Dillon’s had a lot of stops along the way in his life’s journey and lately, he’s been experiencing the pain of losing friends who have passed into the afterlife. That inspired him to write music in memory of those people special to him. That includes his road companion Beignet, a Papillon who was a beacon during a grueling 200 shows-per-year road grind who entered the pearly gates of dog heaven last December.
Eventually, Dillon decided to turn these collective eulogies into a joyful celebration of life, and reimagined his lost friends as animals in a story about a trip to the zoo with a dog. That’s how he ended up with his latest solo release, Mike & Beignet Go to the Zoo (October 2 2026, Royal Potato Family).
“Puma and the Spider Monkey” in the video above is an advance glimpse into this album, but it’s also the only track Dillon recorded live in the studio, departing from the layered percussion for the rest of the fare. His marimba, vibraphone and percussion is joined by his Punkadelic bandmate Brian Haas’ vintage synths and Ginny Mac’s accordion.
The flavor of this song is Cumbia, but it’s Dillon’s own twist on the Columbian folk music form. Haas’ MicroKorg floating about it sounds like a Kraftwerk stab at the genre at first before shifting into a swaying rhythm. Acoustic pieces are still an integral part of the puzzle as both piano and accordion take solo turns and Dillon himself is deftly tackling several instruments at once or in succession.
Pre-order/pre-save Mike & Beignet Go to the Zoo from here.
