Music
Russell Welch Hot Quartet, Time On My Hands (R8T Records)
The title of the album says it all. Guitarist Russell Welch certainly had time on his hands, like we all did, during the pandemic. He put it to better use than most by recording 17 songs in his studio in the Faubourg Marigny—an effort he calls “a collection of quarantine recordings.”
Hanna Mignano, Interplay (Independent)
Violinist and vocalist Hanna Mignano returns with her second release, Interplay, featuring Pete Roze on guitar and Roy Brenc on bass. Her first record, which was reviewed in OffBeat in November 2019, featured a quartet with different supporting players.
Ari Teitel, I Got My Thing (Independent)
Detroit native Ari Teitel burst on the scene in New Orleans with scorching guitar work, sharing stages with some of the best funk musicians in town. Besides his work playing live, he has earned two Grammy nominations as the musical director of Cha Wa. At the beginning of 2022, he left the group along with other core members and formed another Black Indian ensemble, the Rumble with chief Joseph Boudreaux, Jr. He also fronts his own band, the Get Together.
California Honeydrops, Soft Spot (Tubtone Records)
I’ve long had affection for the idea of the California Honeydrops for two reasons. Any band that does a good job of channeling the quintessential New Orleans groove is all right in my book. Secondly, the quintet has long used New Orleans percussionist Scott Messersmith as an auxiliary member on the road and in the studio.
Marty Peters and the Party Meters, Big Easy Livin’ (Independent)
From the opening notes of Jelly Roll Morton’s classic “Milneburg Joys” on the new album from Marty Peters and the Party Meters you can tell this is not going to be a rehash of traditional jazz songs. Though I dig most of the bands playing on the scene today, sometimes it sounds as if they are interchangeable.
Dave Jordan, Keep Going (Independent)
Singer songwriter Dave Jordan is back with another collection of stellar songs, which clearly establish him—for those who ever doubted—as one of the best lyricists on the scene today.
Meschiya Lake and the New Movement, Looking the World Over (Sungroove Records and Syncopation Society)
Instrumentalists are often praised for wearing many musical hats. Vocalists? Not so much. But over her many years in New Orleans, Meschiya Lake has played the chanteuse in duets with pianist Tom McDermott, led her own jumping trad jazz band, the Little Big Horns, sang harmonies with Tuba Skinny vocalist Erika Lewis in Magnolia Beacon and even ripped rock ’n’ roll as a backing vocalist with the Rough 7.
Dr. John, Things Happen That Way (Rounder Records)
Listening to Dr. John’s final, posthumously released studio album, Things Happen That Way, is a bittersweet experience. You get to hear more of his idiosyncratic voice and vocal phrasings as […]
The New Mastersounds, The Deplar Effect (Color Red)
The New Mastersounds open their 17th studio album, like the others before it, with a tune mined from their oldest and deepest influence, The Meters. It’s a tradition the band […]
Andy J. Forest, I Don’t Wanna Work – Modern Vintage Blues (Appaloosa Records)
Andy J. Forest has been around for as long as I can remember, playing his idiosyncratic blend of harmonica blues and boogie-woogie. His first album came out in 1979. Twenty-two […]
