Seattle’s singularly named Skerik is a virtuosic Swiss Army knife of a saxophonist, known for his tireless work ethic, his trillion (or so) bands, and his total disregard for genre boundaries.

He’s a powerhouse of funk, rock, jazz and jams, whether taking a lead role or playing as a sideman in combos like Critters Buggin, Garage a Trois, The Dead Kenny Gs, Les Claypool’s Fancy Band, Tuatara, the Syncopated Taint Septet, Coalition of the Willing, Mad Season, McTuff … seriously, this could go on forever.

So when it was announced that Skerik’s brand new hyper-rhythmic jazz group Bandalabra — with D’vonne Lewis (drums), Andy Coe (guitar) and Evan Flory-Barnes (bass) — would stop in Bend on its first-ever tour (see “If you go”), we reached out and asked him about it. Here is our email interview, edited and condensed.

GO!: How and when did Bandalabra come together?

Skerik: I wanted to start a new band based out of Seattle that could play locally and tour from Seattle, so that when we start a tour there would be no flight costs, etc. Also I really enjoyed playing with D’vonne and Andy in McTuff. And I saw Evan Flory-Barnes playing a couple times and thought it would be a great combination. We started getting together in late summer of 2011. Our first real gig is our new live record! (Editor’s note: “Live at The Royal Room” was released earlier this week.)

GO!: You’ve described Bandalabra’s sound as “Fela Kuti meeting Steve Reich in rock’s backyard.” Was that a concept you wanted to pursue before the band even began? Or is it something that evolved as these four people started playing together?

S: I really wanted to start a rhythmic-oriented band, especially since I’ve been playing so much song-oriented rock in bands like Dead Kenny Gs and Garage a Trois. Bandalabra is a reaction to those groups for me. Fela and Steve Reich are more inspirations than direct sound influences on our band.

GO!: Given those two references — Fela and Reich — I would think rhythm is an even more integral component of Bandalabra’s sound than it is in most bands. How would you describe the role of rhythm in this band?

S: We are all trying to share the weight of syncopation and rhythmic playing equally. It’s not about soloing so much as creating a rhythmic or polyrhythmic weave with the four instruments. Music that is danceable but also interesting to listen to.

GO!: This trip to Bend is part of the first ever Bandalabra tour, right? What can people expect?

S: It’s really all about the pulse. We will be quoting the new record a lot and coming up with new concepts while on tour. Hopefully people will dance, that’s been hard lately in this country. People these days just kind of stare at bands lately. I’m trying to get them to bust out more, so the band can be more in the background providing a pulse for them to dance to.

GO!: I get 24 hours in each of my days, as do most people I know. How many hours are in your day? Or if it’s 24 just like the rest of us, how on Earth do you get so much done?

S: I work about 18 hours a day. I have to, my daughter is expensive! Ha ha. I always wish I had more time; there’s so much music and art to do, there’s never enough time! Learning how to make the most of 24 hours a day is an art in itself …