(July 5, 2012) NEW ORLEANS, LA — What a night of music! Three clubs, four sets, ending up with the mind-crunching funk of the Stooges brass band.
The day got off to a hot start. I wanted to mail a package at the post office. The only trouble is that New Orleans — or at the least the area I’m in — doesn’t have many post offices. The closest one was a 2-mile walk to the Bywater. “How hot could it be?” I thought. It was 95, 53% humidity, 103 on the heat index. Hot. And although there were trees along much of the route, very few of them provided any shade at all. Most were either short palms or set too far back from the sidewalk.
By the time I reached the post office I was dripping with sweat. But I mailed my package, cooled down in the air-conditioned post office, then walked all the way back along a slightly different route. My clothes looked like I’d bathed in them. Oy.
Back at the apartment, I wrote an essay about loneliness, then started mixing today’s show featuring Scott Burton of the Richmond (VA) band Glows In The Dark. Then I moved my stuff across the courtyard to the place where I’ll be staying till Monday. On Monday I move back to the first place.
I hung out for a while with Scott, the guy I’m crashing with now. We chatted about his move from Los Angeles to New Orleans and some of the writing projects he’s working on now. He headed out to a coffee shop around the corner and I finished making the show. Then I sent out a bunch of interview requests to folks like Irvin Mayfield, Kermit Ruffins and the Rebirth Brass Band, among others.
Around 9:00, Scott and I headed to Mimi’s to hear some music by Anthony Cuccia. From what I heard tonight, Anthony is a keyboard-playing singer/songwriter. The band was a trio with Jimbo Walsh on guitar and a bassist whose name I don’t know. They all sang, too. The band played mostly original music plus songs by The Band and T. Rex.
After a while Scott and I walked to the Allways Lounge to hear two bands — Tate Carson’s Carbon Trio followed by The Log Ladies. Both bands were excellent examples of forward-looking improvised music.
Tate Carson was one of the first folks to contact me when I got to New Orleans. He listens to The Jazz Session and invited me to come check out the band. I’m so glad I did. The hook-up between Tate, drummer Brad Webb and keyboardist Jesse Reeks was truly something to hear. This was a band that was less about finding the one than finding the one-and-a-half. As I said via Twitter during the gig, “Every downbeat is an adventure with [Tate Carson]’s band. They’re so far behind the beat you can measure the Doppler shift. Very cool.” I was particularly impressed by Brad Webb’s drumming. Another tweet: “Brad Webb plays drums like a wind-up Freddie Mercury doll. That is a compliment.” As far as I could tell, the band played original (and very catchy) music that managed to be both exciting and intellectually stimulating.
Next on the bill were The Log Ladies, a trio with bassist Jesse Morrow, drummer Dave Cappello and guitarist Chris Alford. Once again I was impressed by the writing and by the sharply defined group sound. The band has an identity and they know it. Cappello was like a Big Easy Han Bennink, crashing through an off-kilter backbeat that managed to groove and confound at the same time. Alford is a compelling soloist who uses his effects pedals well. And Morrow really held down the low end while still finding places for some excellent arco work in line with Alford’s guitar.
The Ladies were joined for three tunes by trombonist Jeff Albert, who’ll be touring Texas with them later this month. I loved the guitar-trombone combination. Adding Jeff really brought an organic, visceral sound to the mix, giving the band even more punch and guts.
Jeff told me that the Stooges Brass Band was playing across the street at the Hi-Ho Club, so I walked over there and was instantly grateful for the tip. This is the kind of music I came to New Orleans to hear. Well, this and the classic New Orleans piano music. The Stooges were loud as hell and funky as all get out and a floor full of dancers were doing everything but actually having sex. It was awesome. Somebody described brass band music to me today as “dated.” I don’t know if I agree, but I do know that it’s thrilling and intensely human and I love it.
It’s going to be hard to not see only brass bands and solo piano gigs for the next three weeks. And funk bands.
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