Described by Village Voice as the "missing link between Public Enemy and Louis Armstrong,"
The Soul Rebels Brass Band, as you would imagine, encapsulate a hip hop
sensibility while paying full respect to the brass band tradition from
which they come. Led by Lumar LeBlanc and Derrick Moss, the New
Orleans-based eight-piece produce funky, horn-driven music that
immediately invites the listener to party.
Formed in the mid-2000s, the patronage of southern funk legends The Meters
did them no harm at all, and as a result, their support slots became
more prestigious; now, Unlock Your Mind is their first, full-length
studio album. Many will know them from the season finale of TV series
Treme. The question after all of this is simple: how can such a joyous
live act transfer onto disc?
The answer: fairly effortlessly. They clearly evoke their most obvious reference point, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, but there are also elements of David Shire’s
claustrophobic brass-heavy score from the cult 1974 film The Taking of
Pelham 123.
[...] At times, it veers into school orchestra territory at the moment when
they first learned how to play the theme from Rocky; but this is a
minor quibble. Overall, this is a full-on, joyous, positive album that
makes you feel like celebrating – indeed, you may be hard pressed to
hear a more vibrant, life-affirming record this year.
By Darryl Easley (BBC Music)
No comments:
Post a Comment