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HOT SEVEN
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04 19 05 |
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How can Monday ever be blue when you have these kinds of options? I mean, the two weeks of Jazz Fest certainly provide more than their fair share of coin-flipping choices, but we can't think of a bigger split decision than trying to figure out whether to attend the WWOZ PIANO NIGHT or the increasingly popular INSTRUMENTS A-COMIN' benefit. They're both star-studded offerings of the best in New Orleans music -- a Jazz Fest unto itself, if you will -- and are such marathon affairs that there's no reason you can't attend both. You can do it, if you've got the moxie.
WWOZ Piano Night turns 17 Monday, April 25, at the recently renovated Generations Hall (310 Andrew Higgins Drive). The event's title is self-explanatory in showcasing the best New Orleans piano players providing a murderer's row of ivory-ticklers in order to raise money for WWOZ (90.7 FM). It's not so much a question of who will be performing as who won't be performing on the keyboards, this year saluting not only an amazing piano player but a New Orleans music giant in producer, songwriter and arranger Allen Toussaint. Past performers include Dr. John (pictured), Eddie Bo, Tom McDermott, Jon Cleary, David Torkanowsky, Marcia Ball (last year's honoree), Davell Crawford, Joe Krown, Peter Martin and John Gros.
Tickets to the event are $30 general admission, $50 balcony and $75 balcony admission plus VIP early admission. VIP event begins at 5 p.m., doors open at 6 p.m. Call 889-6579 for more info.
Now in its fourth year, Instruments A-Comin' at Tipitina's (501 Napoleon Ave., 895-TIPS; www.tiptinas.com) keeps growing in its efforts to provide music instruments for local high-school marching bands. (The benefit helped serve as the impetus for the Tipitina's Foundation, which now provides several services including the Tipitina's Internship Program.) The three previous benefits helped raise $180,000 worth of instruments at seven area schools. This year's beneficiaries: Warren Easton, Alcee Fortier and Carver high schools along with Thurgood Marshall Middle School.
The music lineup features Dr. John, Galactic, the Radiators, the Original Dirty Dozen Brass Band, the T.I.P. Interns and Walter "Wolfman" Washington, with tons more. And that's just on the stage inside. Outdoors before the party begins, there will be a celebration including food, photo exhibits, brass bands and Mardi Gras Indians, along with an expanded silent auction. The Walk of Fame ceremony will honor three local legends: the Dixie Cups, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and the "Creole Beethoven" himself, Wardell Quezergue.
Tickets $25. Outdoor festival starts at 5 p.m., all-star benefit at 6 p.m., Walk of Fame ceremony at 8:30 p.m. -- David Lee Simmons
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- Hairstories
- 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 19
- New Orleans Contemporary Art Center, 900 Camp St., 528-3800; www.cacno.org
Hair aficionados James Harris and Maurice Lemmons take an onstage look at the social significance of modern African-American hairstyles. Much like the 1968 Broadway musical Hair used that stuff on top of (most of) our heads to explore hippie culture, Hairstories touches on topics like the politics of straightening textured hair and the barbershop as a modern-day community center. Hair and art merge as stylists use models to recreate famous African-American 'dos of yesteryear -- from the slick-iron style of the 1920s to Afros of the 1960s and '70s -- as well as an interpretation of what African-American hair will look like in the future. Painters, photographers and sculptors unite for an exhibit that will examine the importance of hair in self-expression, gender and race relations. Tickets $5, free admission for CAC members. -- Ian Manheimer
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While we like to think that all eyes will be on New Orleans over the next couple weekends, it's always helpful to remember that a three-hour drive down I-10, the city of Lafayette puts an amazing musical-heritage festival all its own -- free of charge, in the downtown area. Festival International de Louisiane celebrates the Francophone connection between Louisiana and the rest of the world with our own little holy trinity of music, food and culture. The festivities get off to a gradual start Wednesday with performances by Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie, and the Lucky Playboys, then kicks into gear Thursday with music from Erik Aliana & Korongo Jam (from Cameroon), south Lousiana's Marc Broussard, Malouma (Mauritania) and many others. New Orleans artists love to make this trip, and this year's lineup includes Jeff & Vida on Friday. For the complete schedule visit the Web site at www.festivalinternational.com. -- Simmons
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- Ceux Qui Marchent Debout
- 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. Wednesday, April 20
- Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro, 626 Frenchmen St., 949-0696; www.snugjazz.com
Of the many funky brass bands outside our city inspired by the Dirty Dozen and its children, Ceux Qui Marchent Debout may be the best. These six Frenchmen came to New Orleans in 2001 and made their mark, opening for the ReBirth Brass Band at the Maple Leaf and leaving audiences full of musicians at Snug Harbor and the Matador slack-jawed. For a six-piece group, the sound is big; part of the fullness may be due to the innovative banjo player, who fills out the middle with James Brownish guitar chords. These guys are funny, too. Instead of the 'Get-the-f--k-outta-the-way' braggadocio that many of our brass bands feel compelled to exhibit, they give off a palpable mirth, a continental charm, a desire to entertain without the rapper's hauteur. The Band That Marches Standing Up is a show not to be missed. Tickets $15. -- Tom McDermott
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- New Bumpers Dixieland Jazz Band
- 6 p.m. Thursday, April 21
- The Ogden Museum of Southern Art, 925 Camp St., 539-9600; www.ogdenmuseum.org
This five-piece Dixieland band formed in Bordeaux, France, in 2000, but recorded its new album, Trip to New Orleans, here this past February. The group's performance at the Ogden on the eve of Jazz Fest is a rare chance to see this international band -- which is playing at both Jazz Fest and the Festival International de Louisiane (see above) -- and also to hear them talk about traditional jazz from a French perspective. Ogden shows feature an interview segment -- this one conducted by Gambit Weekly contributor John Swenson -- in addition to a chance to see music in an intimate venue. On Thursday, the museum is also opening a show of classic and unknown photographs by jazz photographer Herman Leonard. Tickets $10, free for Ogden members. -- Alex Rawls
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- LPO's Classics #7: "Brahms & Prokofiev"
- 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 21; 8 p.m. Saturday, April 23
- Orpheum Theatre, 143 University Place, 523-6530; www.lpomusic.com
The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra begins the stretch run of its 2004-2005 season with this performance complete with young guest conductor Edwin Outwater. The resident conductor of the San Francisco Symphony, Outwater is also the Wattis Foundation Music Director for the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra. 'Direct and economical in his gestures, Outwater, who looks as if he could be almost as much at home on the gridiron as on the podium, might be easy to underestimate,' The Los Angeles Times wrote of the 31-year-old. 'That would be a mistake.' Outwater will be joined by guest violinist Caitlin Tully, with the LPO performing its 'Brahms & Prokofiev' program that features Mozart's Overture to The Marriage of Figaro, Brahms' Violin Concerto and Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5. Tickets $13-$62. -- Simmons
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- Richard Thompson
- 9 p.m. Thursday, April 21
- The Parish at House of Blues, 225 Decatur St., 529-BLUE; www.hob.com
Richard Thompson is two years removed from his latest album, The Old Kit Bag. His current solo tour, titled '1000 Years of Popular Music,' covers material from the mid-13th century ballad 'Sumer Is Icumen In,' which has a fascinating relationship to the traditional blues 'The Cuckoo,' and Prince's 'Kiss.' There's no question that Thompson is one of the most gifted guitarists and songwriters of at least the last 50 years, and as a founding member of Fairport Convention, he was instrumental in reviving British folk music in the 1960s. His sparse, stately electric guitar work contrasted dramatically with the prevailing style of the British guitar hero. Thompson has written a treasure trove of great songs over the years; some of those may make the millennial cut. Tickets $25. -- John Swenson
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- Wilco
- 9 p.m. Thursday, April 21
- State Palace Theater, 1108 Canal St., 522-4435; www.statepalace.com
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Wilco performs Thursday at the State Palace Theater.
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When Jeff Tweedy formed Wilco from the ashes of Uncle Tupelo (with Jay Farrar forming Son Volt), Wilco became the darling of the alt.country/roots rock set. On 1995's A.M. and the following year's Being There, the results sounded like Gram Parsons bumped into the Rolling Stones, Mountain and Todd Rundgren -- what could be cooler? When Summerteeth added the Velvet Underground, Kinks and Brian Wilson to the mix in 1999, it was cooler still, if not quite as rocking. With Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in 2002, the band distanced itself from roots rock, veering toward Radioheadland with more idiosyncratic structures and arrangements that were more emotionally affecting. Last year's A Ghost Is Born (Nonesuch) continues along that path, experimenting with pop music to see how little melody, or how little movement, or how few words are really needed in a song. The answer? Not much, on this melodic, moving, eloquent album. Tickets $29.50. -- Rawls
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- Sones De Mexico
- 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 22; 2 p.m. Saturday, April 23
- Jefferson Performing Arts Center, 400 Phlox Ave., 885-2000; www.jpas.org
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The Sones De Mexico performs Friday-Saturday at the Jefferson Performing Arts Center.
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To Freddie Mercury's famous inquiry 'Will you do the fandango?' the Sones De Mexico answer back simply: Yes, we will -- very well. The Mexican quintet hailing from Chicago specializes in son -- a traditional Mexican genre that is noted for its live and exciting feel. Director Victor Pichardo -- son of the late folk great Amparo Ochoa -- guides his mariachis through a catalogue of songs that cross all facets of Mexican culture. The crew brings along a plethora of folk instruments, mostly unknown to American audiences, and sets the dance floor on fire with its acrobatic dance exhibitions. Tickets $30 orchestra seats, $25 adult parquet and balcony, $15 students (18-under) in the parquet and balcony. -- Manheimer
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- The Walkmen
- 10 p.m. Friday, April 22
- TwiRoPa, 1544 Tchoupitoulas St., 232-9503; www.twiropa.com
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The Walkmen rock TwiRoPa on Friday.
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The Walkmen return to play New Orleans after being shut out by Hurricane Ivan, and the time since that canceled show has treated the band well. Its latest album, Bows and Arrows (Record Collection), came out last year and has slowly picked up steam, thanks in no small part to a featured performance on Fox's The O.C. The album begins with a slowly building organ drone. Lead singer Hamilton Leithauser then joins in with a morose 'What's in it for me?' before the full band kicks in fast and furious and Leithauser reveals fully his soaring, arena-ready vocals, sounding like a young Bono from U2. The group's songs possess a stripped-down, fuzzed-out, analog sound like other indie bands on The O.C. soundtracks, but the Walkmen's driving organ, deconstructed pop structures and Leithauser's vocals make it a cut above. Local band World Leader Pretend recorded its upcoming album in the Walkmen's Marcata studio in New York City. Tickets $16. -- Rob Bryant
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- Wiley & the Checkmates
- 10:30 p.m. Friday, April 22
- The Circle Bar, 1032 St. Charles Ave., 588-2616; www.circlebar.net
The Checkmates from Oxford, Miss., are an unlikely tale of endurance and resurrection in the annals of soul music. Bassist Herbert Wiley led the original group in the 1960s, backing legends like Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown and Percy Sledge on area tours. The band split in the early '70s, and Wiley took over the family business, a chain of shoe shops. In 2002, Wiley resurrected the group, this time adding new members. Its live set runs the gamut of classic soul covers from the '60s and '70s, together with originals from the 2004 release Introducing Wiley & the Checkmates (Pickmark), recorded by Bruce Watson from the Oxford-based Fat Possum Records. Wiley's low, rich vocals straddle multiple styles capably, from the wistful, Sam Cooke-esque 'Gonna Find A Way' to the funky, salacious romp 'Streak-A-Leon,' which recalls the nasty talk of Fat Possum recording artist and dirty old soul man Nathaniel Mayer. Tickets $5. -- Alison Fensterstock
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- Gogol Bordello and Morning 40 Federation
- 10 p.m. Saturday, April 23
- TwiRoPa, 1544 Tchoupitoulas St., 232-9503; www.twiropa.com
Gogol Bordello's manic gypsy caravan is rolling into town again to Balkanize the city with its eclectic blend of Eastern European folk music, reggae, dancehall, electronica, devil-raising gypsy fiddle and front man Eugene Hutz's mustachioed impressions of a Ukrainian Iggy Pop. Fresh from recording their first studio album since 2002 with legendary producer Steve Albini, the Gogols have the electric borscht on full boil. Local derelict gang the Morning 40 Federation shares the bill, with boozy horns and sleazy Ninth Ward rock that seems to draw from brass bands, hip-hop, funk and vaudeville. Morning 40 is currently recording its first full-length studio album for its new label, M80 music. It's like chasing a shot of plum brandy with a High Life. Tickets $15. -- Fensterstock
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- Maya Angelou
- 7 p.m. Sunday, April 24
- Tulane University, Nunemaker Auditorium, Monroe Hall, 861-5882
From her breakthrough 1970 book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings to her poem 'On the Pulse of Morning' for President Bill Clinton's 1993 inauguration to her 2002 Medal of Arts, Maya Angelou has lived a lifetime of broad achievement. She has been a permanent Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University since 1981 and continues to write installments of her autobiography. She has worn many hats -- poet, actress, playwright, civil rights activist, producer and director, among many others -- and still remains active on the speaking circuit. (Happy 77th, by the way, Maya!) Last fall, Angelou published Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories With Recipes (Random House). Angelou will hold a discussion only in this appearance and will not hold a book signing afterward. Free admission. -- Simmons
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- Campbell Brothers Sacred Steel
- 9:30 p.m., Sunday, April 24
- Rosy's Jazz Hall, 500 Valence St., 896-7679; rosyjazzhall.com
Sacred steel is a form of African-American gospel music played with vocals and electric pedal steel guitar. The Campbell family has been playing it for more than 60 years, and has mastered the genre, which has been growing in popularity during the last 10 years. The brothers use a steel guitar to imitate the wails and shouts of worshipping human voices, as well as to play music to accompany real voices. Sacred Steel music is wild in its tones and arrangements; it has a dash of Jimi Hendrix's wah-wah pedal and bent notes combined with fervor of a rural gospel choir. Sacred steel music can inspire listeners into religious ecstasy, and the way the Campbell Brothers play it, expect a frenzied and visionary performance. The band opens for Ivan Neville's Dumpsta Phunk, so get there early. Tickets $26 -- David Kunian
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Post-Jazz Fest 2002, frenetic pied piper Clint Maedgen parlayed his score of hundreds of retro bingo game cards -- plus an artistic need to express kinder, gentler music than is possible with his hard-rocking band Liquidrone -- into Bingo!. An immediate smash success, Bingo! created a standing-room-only scene surrounding its weekly Thursday night gig at Fiorella's Cafe. After developing a loyal local following, the band performed a multi-week run in New York City to rave reviews. Musically, the band created 'carnie rock,' a sensory-overload approach applied to the intricate musical mastery of Maedgen. Violinist Brynn Sauvage, upright bassist Steve Calandra and drummer Ryan Farris joined Maedgen, who played the pump organ in this line-up. Despite the buzz, band members ventured in different directions about a year ago. Whether this show is a reunion or a new beginning remains to be seen. Tickets $10. -- Frank Etheridge
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- Jon Cleary and the Classic R&B All-Stars
- Midnight Monday/Tuesday, April 25/26
- Preservation Hall, 726 St. Peter St., 522-2841; www.preservationhall.com
One Music's Midnight Preserves series of acoustic shows this week and next promises lots of surprises, but we're particularly intrigued by this assemblage led by keyboard whiz Jon Cleary. England's funkiest export knows his way around a collaborative jam, and this 'Classic R&B All-Star' lineup features saxophonist Plas Johnson, drummer Shannon Powell, bassist Chuck Badie and saxophonist James Rivers. Johnson, a native of Donaldsonville, cut his musical teeth in New Orleans before moving on to become one of the most sought-after saxophone sidemen in the business. It is his mischievous, breathy sax lead that dominates Harry Mancini's theme song to The Pink Panther series, as well as the catchy theme song to the TV version of The Odd Couple. Last June, the LA Weekly alternative newsweekly honored Johnson with a Lifetime Achievement Award (other honorees included Joan Jett and Mike Watt). This is an 18-plus event; doors open at 11 p.m. Tickets $12. -- Simmons
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Growing up as the tallest girl in Queensborough, N.Y., Claudia DeMonte found out the hard way that women were expected to be "feminine." And in traditional, Catholic and multiethnic Queens, tall and skinny didn't fit the bill. Fortunately for DeMonte, now 57, feminism came of age when she did, and as an artist she has worked those formative influences of Catholicism, feminism and female stereotypes into her sculpture. Objects shaped like toasters, princess phones and other traditional domestic items are covered in pewter "milagros," little metal Mexican holy charms that she says were pervasive in Queens when she was growing up. DeMonte makes her own milagros in the shape of hearts, houses, purses, pots and pans to create good-natured "female fetishes," sculptural icons that both satirize and celebrate the roles that women traditionally play. -- D. Eric Bookhardt
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