The Bottoms Up Blues Gang learned its trade in the thriving St. Louis blues scene during the late 1990s from old masters like Bennie Smith, Henry Townsend and Oliver Sain. The band attempted to gain a foothold in New Orleans in 2002, but it wasn’t easy.

Guitarist Jeremy Segel-Moss and singer Kari Liston didn’t mind struggling in the Crescent City even though they were already well set up in St. Louis. Their love for New ...