[New Orleans, LA (I'm guessing)]: Upbeat tight brass band. They were really good, had a pleasantly cocky air, and reminded the crowd after each song that tipping is the only things that saves them from the “poor house and the whore house.” I don’t think they were kidding. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, it amazes me every time how the instruments that are band geek around the rest of the nation are the instruments of choice for the baddest of boys in New Orleans.

an upright bass, a drum (just one), and a sax – a trumpet showed up late – I liked that they looked more like cool jazz musicians than snooty jazz musicians – the sax player faced away from the crowd – the upright bassist had a knit cap on – the drummer had dreads – the soft steady climbing up and down bass stood out to me – they were almost noodly in that the songs didn’t head where you’d expect them to so that I guess that makes it free jazz??? – I don’t know – I liked them

the amazing street band that drew a bigger crowd than was seemingly in all of the clubs lining Frenchmen St. – they played a hard jazz, a punk jazz, or a free style jazz that was still incredibly listenable and danceable – was immeasurably more interesting to me than that old played out same-style jazz you hear all over New Orleans, but they told us that the clubs won’t hire them to play – maybe because they’re clearly from the poorer parts of New Orleans – it amused me that in New Orleans, it’s cool, even for street kids, to play band-geek instruments like the trumpet and trombone

you’d think this was exactly what we were just seeing (Linnza Zaorski), i.e., another retro girl with a backing band, but the sound was pretty different – this band had a lot more brass and wasn’t as easy breezy – this girl was older and harder – she was fine but didn’t particularly stand out to me – this was where we ran into scary people from the swing dancing convention that was meeting in New Orleans during the French Quarter Festival

Rockboy has had her music for a while and was Very eager to see her – it was clear why once we arrived – she’s a hottie – she was charming old men, young men, girls and even dogs passing by – she sings in that nasally sweetie girl voice from the 20s/40s – there is no doubt that she was entrancing – the whole band seemed a little stoned – outside of her voice, the vibe of the band was very smoky-coffee-shop – after Rockboy told me how she passed out in the bathroom midset during a show in Austin, I spent the show pondering the plights of being Linnzi Zaorski…

that big-sound bluesy rocking jazz – reminded me of the Sex and the City episode with the “I Can’t Get Next to You” song – it just bugs me

as the name would suggest, they mix zydeco with punk – Rockboy foresaw Pogues and I foresaw gypsy punk, and that’s about exactly what we got – they were terrific – very Gogol Bordello – lots of passion – they’d played a show until 3am the night before and were at this show by mid-morning – this was the best venue of the whole festival, just a field – no bureaucracy, tons of good food stands, and everybody mellow in their little fold out chairs – we started feeling like locals once we picked ourselves up some of those chairs and settled in with the middle aged folks – this band inspired some truly creative dancing from the audience – the kind of band you’d want to have at your wedding, even if you’re not Greek or Jewish

they were playing a Sunday brunch show at a warehouse type bar on Frenchmen St. – it was pretty straightforward traditional jazz – pleasant – suitable for a Sunday morning – not too tricky

Rockboy saw this band the day before and raved over their zydeco fantabulousness – I think zydeco is the ugliest music in creation but turns out it’s the danciest music in creation – they were just a bunch of fugly guys in the tackiest bar EVER but everybody wanted to be at their party – appears I’ll need to look into zydeco a little bit more

Irvin Mayfield is a good-looking slick guy in a suit who convinced the crowd that we need to visit his jazz club – the band was made up of a set of similarly slick brass players, a piano player, an all-grins banjo player, and three peacocked up females who inexplicably sat at the side of the stage for most of the set – there was also an adorable little boy with his own trombone that he would play every and now then when he wasn’t standing stoically – Michael Watson, also a trombone player, was a tall drink of water with a butter voice – he reminded me of Marvin Gaye – Sasha Mazakowski, daughter of some famous guitar player, was an exceedingly and obnoxiously hip girl with giant sunglasses who sang her admittedly pretty sad-mysterious jazz with more hand emoting than voice power – her voice wasn’t bad but I couldn’t get over her awareness of herself

a bunch of brown-clothed hobo-looking kids playing old time jazz blues – turned out they had a ‘showcase’ show for the Fest sometime later – lots of brass and a dancing girl but the kid on a washboard with a tilted cap was the best

I think this was the band’s name – there were about ten men on the stage – all older gents, each with a different instrument – the music was so markedly better than what we’d been hearing pouring out of Bourbon St clubs, that we knew we had arrived at our first official French Quarter Fest stage – traditional jazz – I don’t know the proper terms but it’s the happy go lucky kind that makes me think of full dresses and big rivers – it was great!

[Austin, TX] we had both heard good things about this band but were mostly disappointed – first off the stage was dark just like the opening band (I started wondering if there was a malfunction), which made their fantastical costumes only bland outlines – secondly, they worked so hard on being odd art rock that they forgot to be themselves – they probably have potential (sounded like they have some genuine jazz background) but, in terms of both sound and visuals, they just seemed really far away from the audience in the most anti-climatic way

[Louisiana - he might not live there now but he is forever Louisiana] Oh Jerry – he was the point of this whole weekend (for some of us) – sure I know his hits, but he was never momentous to me – I appreciate his music though and I appreciate his style, especially after weeks of tutelage in his finer moments – so I\”m all amped up to see this wild-haired, piano-bench-thrusting guy who made 50s kids writhe like they were possessed, and I\”m even prepared for the fact that he has aged since those days, but I wasn\”t quite prepared to see a hunch-backed old man helped out onto the stage to sit on his piano bench, where he sat stiffly for the remainder of the show – a lesson in mortality, my friends: age will seriously tame even the wildest of us – where\”s his 13-year-old cousin now? – anyway, he actually put on a great show – he can still sing and he can still play – the piano honestly sounded a little muddy to me at times, but I\”m not sure I\”ve ever seen piano, boogie piano at least, live and maybe that\”s just the way it sounds – by the late-middle of the show, he was cracking jokes with the audience and telling some rowdy little jokes and it\”s clear he\”s a man who has enjoyed his time in a serious way – despite that, he has been described as worrying more than other sinners over his post-death fate, what with his fundamentalist religious beginnings (and continuings possibly) which is a pretty fascinating way to have endured through life

[Austin, TX] so all the young people and the hip people cleared out before this show, leaving the middle-aged and old people and the genuinely cowboy hatted people, and the mildly embarrassed remains of some young or at least younger people – this band is mildly legendary in Austin but pretty much just among the adult contemporary set – I found out at the show that they’d won a Grammy and was prepared to still not be impressed but they were just so polished and pretty, I couldn’t help it – it was kind of country swing but very sophisticated with hints of old-timey jazz – besides being all shiny, the music was complicated with little surprises at every turn and lots of heart – not to mention that I found myself wildly attracted to the lead guy, a mammoth long-legged old mountain-porch of a man – maybe I was being delusional but I recognized both his name (Ray Benson) and him…past lives

[California now] surprisingly probably my favorite show – former bassist of The Stray Cats – he conveniently played some of their stuff and then did a sort of homage to Sun Records\” musicians – while same-old same-old rockabilly bands get tiresome tiresome, hearing his very apt renditions of Stray Cats\” songs reminded me how un-same of a band they were – cool darkness, style, distinctive pacing with the bass lines – they were a great band and he translated that to us all by himself (with a backing band) – and then he reminded me, something I only learned upon moving to Texas, of the pivotal-ness of Sun Records\” musicians, a good lesson for any young person

[Austin, TX] retro music bores me more quickly than some of my associates but Wayne was kind of gripping – his voice was so quintessentially twangy and old-timey country, even though he’s not, plus he had an assortment of minor face ticks that kept you watching – very good “juke joint swing,” as he terms it, with lots of Hank Williams in there – will remain forever baffled by the Hawaiian-sounding lap steel accents of country swing music

[Stockholm, Sweden] out of all of the many female-vocalist semi-retro bands we saw (thanks to the Rockboy), this was my favorite – Miss Li had a genuine edge and sang creatively and enthusiastically while pounding on her little keyboard – she didn\”t seem like she was acting but like she was really just that passionate and that much fun – they\”re really less retro revival and more indie pop inspired by retro jazz and blues – she was backed by a guitar, drums, a sax (I think?) and an upright bass, but we particularly enjoyed the two very Swedish looking gents – oddly, we\”d tried to see her earlier at an outside stage, even willing to brave ridiculous 40 degree weather, and been told she\”d gone home due to the weather

[Durham, NC] a top show – their album is called “Genuine Negro Jigs” and that’s a pretty perfect description – this show was being broadcast live over a radio station in Chicago – the formal setting of chairs and big cameras and big lights might have made them uncomfortable because all three sat stiff and unsmiling while they were waiting to play – they came alive with a vengeance once they started to play, adding dancing and facial expressions and stories to the music – ended up being an incredibly charismatic band – in addition to encompassing all artistic aspects of the music, they embrace it anthropologically, which is transmitted to the crowd with little spoken bits in between each song – they alternated through finger clackers, dobros, banjos, fiddles, a jug and a kazoo – they encouraged the audience to sing along to their first song “Don”t Get Troubled in Your Mind” – they got their next song “Georgia Buck” from Joe Thompson, an old guy who taught them a lot of what they know – they switched into early jazz with Papa Charlie Jackson’s “Your Baby Ain’t Sweet Like Mine” – highlights: 1) “the jug solo” as Rockboy called it, 2) Rhiannon’s barefoot tap-style dancing, and 3) realizing the kazoo is responsible for that wacky old-timey vaudeville sound

[Los Angeles, CA] this band was at the top of both Rockboy and my\”s list and we were not let down – traditional Cambodian pop vocals backed by psychedelic jazz rock – a great concept well executed by a very appealing band – I was especially a fan of the extremely tall man on bass guitar and the long-bearded man on guitar – the band had a charming air of authenticity and exotic mystery, with the men dressed like shabby serious musicians and the little lead singer in a cheesy but quaint Vegas call girl outfit: short black dress and black stilettos, both of which had diamondy attachments – they even managed to make throwing piles of glitter during key points of songs genuine and naïve rather than contrived

[Sydney, Australia] a sassy vixen with a big red flower in her big blonde waves – she sang with the attitude of Amy Winehouse and the voice of Macy Gray and she danced like a little jogging train throughout the whole show – her backing band was sort of special, incorporating little jazzy bits

a fine boss-girl of a lead singer in her red dress with zig-zagging fringes and scattered arm tattoos – in addition to her solid version of low-toned female rockabilly vocalizing, she handled DJ responsibilities in between sets – the band was completed by an upright bass guitarist, drummer, and lead guitarist – some covers, old country, rockabilly, swing; and then a song where the vocalist left and the musicianship was turned up and it was very exciting psychosurf; and then our personal finale was a song that started like the Flipper song with “HA HA HA HA HO HO HO!” lyrics, was dedicated as “The Laughing Song” to the upright guitarist’s “partner,” and has been determined by the wonderous Google to be a The Residents song of the same name that is described as sounding like The Flipper song – it must be noted that the venue was satisfyingly swanky rock club and the environment on their ‘Swing Night’ was earnest, clean dance devotion with a crowd of youngsters, hipsters, oldsters alike

the more that I understand the sound of Texas swing, the more I appreciate this band – they elaborate on the sound and play intelligently and creatively – always based in country but sometimes leaning more toward the bluegrass then toward a solid swing song and then a waltz and then almost jazzy – they\”re very good musicians and make the song their own while maintaining its integrity – Jeremy, the lead singer\”s, voice might not be remarkable but what is remarkable is his deft management of the band and dedication to the music he loves

A jazzy five-man jam band with funk tendencies, Persian Blue played the opening set at Johnny D’s on a Friday night. Their set started flat but picked up with the addition of vocalist Nina Evans, and from then on, the group put on a sizzling, energetic performance. The tempo definitely picked up when Evans stood in front of the mic, but to their credit, the guys kept it going through a number of substantial jams. Fronted by Shah Hadjebi, Persian Blue is one part guitar, one part bass, one part drums, one part keyboard, and then there is the guy that plays everything else. They closed with a version of No Doubt’s Hella Good that was in some respects better than the original.

rock-jazz, very good, upright bass – trumpet – sax – guitar – drums – they had it all plus a female drummer, anti-pop but not abrasive, diverse songs and sounds, the type of band whose album wouldn\”t get boring since there\”s a lot to pay attention to

great: intense and interesting, jazz art rock, tangential rock with lead vocalist playing the sax at times, got a little more direct as they kept playing, Rockboy described as the real New Wave before it became pop

the fantasmous band, all hoppy and Charlestony with the 7 foot man in short pants as their lead singer, they\”re not meant to play outside – better in an old bar with wooden floors!

mix of Tom Waits and Nice Cave; Rockboy hears Jim Morrison in the singer’s voice, I hear sex in the singer’s voice: incredibly literate with a wry humor and “subtle” neck tattoo; lead vocalist was dressed like a hobo and the rest were loungey in sharp clothes and sunglasses; drums, guitar, bass, guitar, percussion, saxophone, keyboard; nice and dark

Burton on pedal steel and singing – young hipster too self conscious to seem comfortable singing old Texas swing songs, rest of the band is a conglomerate of people from other bands in the Austin swing scene

Rockboy was all enthused about this band now that he is officially a member of the anything-rootsy scene in Austin, I was bored silly by this band initially – western swing but it sounded like lounge music to me, and lounge music basically takes good songs and sucks the character out of them, BUT as the set went on for hours they went into their bluegrass selections and some moody wailers and the three are the fantastic musicians that they are purported to be: French jazz guitar, Elana James as lead vocalist and fiddler and then the thumpiest upright bass player I\”d ever seen (he seemed to bounce his hand as he slapped so getting more out of each motion), the drummer is not always with them and did not seem to be having as good of a time as the rest of them, Rockboy heard about them through Shotgun Party connections and though Elana sometimes sings in a similarly old-timey cute girl fashion her voice is no match for her violin playing or Shotgun\”s voice, the happy hour bands at The Continental are generally high quality, they\”re heading out for a three week tour in Australia next week

so good that I was in continuous state of body prickles and it wasn’t only because of the horror of the previous band, one of the most charming and engaging bands I have seen in a long time, in large part due to the charismatic lead singer – a pug girl with a shock of blonde hair and a puppy dog enthusiasm and energy, she sang in an old-timey cutesy voice – kind of playful but high high quality, she verged on insane – jaw bracing, eyes darting – and I kept waiting to see a dark side but she maintained this tremendous aura of joy and quirkiness before, during and after her set, she also played guitar, the violinist was fantastic – a wispy near-severe former gothic woman in a red satin dress and ripped arms – purportedly one of the best in town, the positive interaction between the lead singer and the upright bass player when leaning in to share the microphone also built the appeal of a band that enjoys each other and enjoys what they’re doing, mostly old-timey swinging jazz and country songs, cute lyrics, one Spanish guitar song, one more modern-sounding song that reminded me of CocoRosie, the girl has it is my point

an unnamed banjo player opened (Carousel Lounge) – a shabby fellow totally entranced with himself – actually played several rootsy instruments, was really excited to see Bee vs. Moth because described as ska, post-punk, jazz, etc. but after being two hours late they were definitely more jazz than the two former, I didn’t stay for the majority of the show so may be an unfair judgment, they were a hopped up Miles Davis, very freeform, assume they’re good musicians, need to see again