Sipping draft beers around a short legged table at New Orleans’ R Bar, Mark Mullins and John Gros seem a bit confused about the confusion surrounding their band, MuleBone. Since the band’s inception in 1997, they have been compared to everyone from Lynrd Skynrd to Miles Davis. Although the two veteran musicians are flattered by some of the comparisons, they want people to know that the music they are creating is something altogether new. After either seeing MuleBone live or discerningly listening to their debut CD, 5 Shakes, 7 Spirits, both jazz and rock aficionados may think that what MuleBone is doing might just be revolutionary.
Trying to fit the band in to any singular genre is almost impossible. Although Gros says that his musical influences include, among others, Jimmy Hendrix, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, the Meters and Louis Armstrong, the MuleBone singer and keyboardist feels that his musical inspirations are elusive.
“You would have to do a lot of digging in our music before you could find those influences. None of us are directly inspired, we just want something that is going to rock,” Gros says.
Gros labels MuleBone’s music as “Pure New Orleans rock and roll.”
What this means is left to listeners to figure out for themselves. What is evident is that MuleBone is an odd synthesis of grunge, hard core, pop and, strangely enough, traditional New Orleans jazz.
“We don’t have the traditional New Orleans sound. What we have are all of the elements rhythmically and lyrically. The most identifiable trait we have is a horn leading the pack just like Louis Armstrong did. Everything that came out of New Orleans that was huge had horns,” Gros says.
Still, Gros is not above comparisons when he tries to characterize the evolutionary sound of his band.
“It has inherited the rock lineage conceived by Professor Longhair, Fats Domino and Little Richard, nurtured by Allen Toussaint, the Meters and Doctor John and brought to the world by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin,” Gros says.
If there is one element of MuleBone’s music that has confounded critics and audiences alike, it is a dislocated resonance that upon listening to 5 Shakes, 7 Spirits, could easily be mistaken as a squealing lead guitar. Depending on how it is manipulated, the sound can be as powerful as Kurt Cobain’s gutwrenching guitar or as soulful as Louis Armstrong’s trumpet. To those who have never seen MuleBone live, their penetrating sound is the product of Mullin’s burning, amplifier-driven trombone. Now here may be where all of the confusion comes from. A jazz trombonist leading a rock band is as peculiar a combination as Kai Winding fronting Alice in Chains. When performing live, MuleBone often confounds their audiences.
“For our first big gig we opened for the Meters,” Gros recalls. “People in the audience didn’t know what we were up to. They just sort of stared at us; nobody was moving and their mouths were opened. I think we kind of confused them.”
Mullins adds that the bewilderment of their audience wasn’t altogether negative.
“It was supportive confusion; it was kind of cool,” Mullins says.
Perhaps the comparisons that have puzzled both Mullins and Gross the most are the ones some critics and listeners have made between MuleBone and southern rock bands such as Lynyrd Skynyrd.
“I think people really need to listen to the CD before they draw conclusions. Typically with southern rock and roll there is a certain ‘boogie element’ we don’t have it and that’s cool with me,” Gros says.
Although Mark Mullins is more accustomed to fervent rather than confused audiences, the local legend has never been happier. It is, however, odd that Mullins, who started playing trombone when he was eight years-old, wound up finding satisfaction in a band such as MuleBone. After graduating from Loyola in 1990 with a degree in classical and jazz trombone, Mullins fell upon one of the most serendipitous opportunities in New Orleans music history.
“During my last semester, some trombone players told me that Harry Connick Jr. was putting a band together. This was right after the whole When Harry Met Sally thing, so he was getting pretty big. I got a call from Harry’s music director and he had me audition over the phone. Two weeks went by and I didn’t hear anything.” Mullins says.
In the end, Mullins got the gig and ended up touring with the emerging crooner and his newly created big band. Mullin’s career with Connick has continued on and off over the past six years. The young trombonist has also appeared on several of Connick’s albums including Blue Light, Red Light and his Christmas CD.
Along the way Mullins also gained notoriety by performing with such big name acts as Tori Amos, Better Than Ezra, Rancid and George Porter Jr. Mullins admits that, while in college, he had always had rather lofty ambitions.
“By the time I got out of college I wanted to do with the trombone what Wynton Marsalis had done with the trumpet,” Mullins says.
Mullins admits that performing with Connick in front of exuberant audiences of twenty-thousand or more was, to say the least, exhilarating. Although he was grateful for the opportunity Connick had given him, Mullins still yearned to do what he had wanted since he was a dreamy-eyed teenager blasting his trombone in the high school marching band; he wanted to be a rock star.
“I always thought of myself as more of a rock fan than a jazz fan. I kept asking myself, ‘How can I get the trombone to work in rock music?’ After fifteen years on trombone I knew it would be hard for me to take up a new instrument.” Mullins says.
After graduating the same year from Loyola as Mullins with a degree in the French Horn, John Gros spent several years honing his skills as a songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist and producer. Gros soon gained notoriety by performing with acts such as The Brides of Jesus, Snooks Eaglin, George Porter, Jr. and Thousand$ Car. Yet, like Mullins, Gros had bigger musical aspirations of his own. In perhaps the second most important proposal of his life, Mullins was asked by Gros if he would be interested in joining him on a new project. As soon as Mullins found out that it was a rock and roll band, he was in.
Although Mullins had always entertained the idea of starting his own rock band, he was in need of a little extra push from his friends.
“John is the one who came in with focus and direction.” Mullins says.
The first incarnation of MuleBone was a short lived affair. Although Gros and Mullins were excited about their new venture, neither were quite ready to commit.
“At the end of 1995 we got some friends together and played at the Mermaid Lounge, but right after that we all went out on the road again so MuleBone only played one gig.” Gros says.
By 1997, after fulfilling their obligations with other bands, Mullins and Gros were finally ready to get serious about MuleBone. The problem, Gros and Mullins soon realized, was trying to convince other musicians to commit themselves to a rock and roll band with a lead trombone at its center. Especially ambivalent was former Beatin’ Path drummer Mike Barras.
“Mike was skeptical; he was busy with other projects and thought that MuleBone was kind of a goofy project. But after one gig, he said, ‘Yeah, I’ll do that.’ We were shocked that he was willing to commit to it,” Gros says.
Vernon Rome had no scruples at all, in fact, after being asked if he would like to contribute to the Mullins/Gros project, Rome immediately pulled his bass guitar out of the closet for the first time in three years.
Along with the expertise of Woodenhead and Twangorama guitar guru, Jimmy Robinson, MuleBone was born. Mullins originally intended to synthesize the traditional brass sound of the trombone into the music that he and Gros were writing, nothing new since brass arrangements in rock and roll have been used by everyone from Fats Domino to The Rolling Stones. After tinkering with different ways for Mullins to find his musical identity within MuleBone, a Fender 75 amplifier introduced Mullins to something altogether new.
“We just kind of stumbled on the trombone sound,” Mullins says.
With the help of the standard amp and a wah-wah peddle, Mullins was able to take his horn to new heights.
Already MuleBone has earned quite an impressive reputation among New Orleans musicians. Despite their puzzling composition, the band has received accolades from several big name performers including Harry Connick Jr.
“Harry seemed to really like it,” Mullins says. “I was surprised. He’s always got a lot of people coming up to him saying ‘listen to this’ But after hearing it he said that he thought it was time for a new sound to come along. He was really supportive.”
Another MuleBone loyalist was George Porter, Jr.
“George is probably our biggest fan. In our early days George would just show up by himself. And he’s also sat in with us a couple of times,” Gros says.
Unfortunately, the skeptics are out there.
“There is a certain sense in some jazz circles that if you rock you can’t do jazz.” Mullins says. This was made apparent when MuleBone was booked to play a popular uptown club.
“We played at the Maple Leaf one night. Four trombone players showed up to see us and within ten minutes after we started, they were out the door.”
Still the animosity between the rock and jazz genres shouldn’t deter MuleBone from pursuing their dreams. Last year the band was selected by readers as OffBeat’s best new rock band of 1998. Mullins was also selected as New Orleans’ best trombonist for the second year in a row. As far as reaching a nationwide audience, Mullins says that it is not the band’s number one priority.
“We’d like to do some shows in the southeast first but I’m not in any hurry. I just want to stay here in New Orleans for a while and get established.” Mullins says.
While not playing with MuleBone, Gros and Mullins keep themselves busy by frequently sitting in with other bands. Gros still performs solo and with Porter and his Runnin’ Pardners, and Mullins is scheduled to perform with Connick for a private show in Las Vegas this month. Mullins and Jimmy Robinson can also frequently be heard performing with Woodenhead.
In November 1998, MuleBone traveled to New Orleans’ Kingsway Studios to record their debut CD, 5 Shakes, 7 Spirits. Working together on the CD proved to be a bonding experience that helped each member recognize their potential as a band.
“I think we became a band at that time; we just got better and we realized that we liked playing together,” Gros says.
The result is an impressive and strikingly eclectic collection of distinctive rock and roll songs. As clichè as it sounds, this CD has something for everyone. “Somebody” a radio-friendly pop ditty reminiscent of the long forgotten BoDeans (there’s a new comparison for you) showcases Mullins’ well integrated expertise on the trombone, this time minus the amp. “Sunshine Boy” starts off with a hard guitar riff that exudes the hard-core energy of Rage Against the Machine then transcends guitar-driven rock when Mullins’ trombone, once again without the amp, kicks in taking the song to new heights. When listening to MuleBone, one can’t help thinking of several different bands. But what sets MuleBone apart is the incredible orchestration on all of the CD’s ten tracks. While Gros adds a mystic, almost psychedelic quality with Wurlitzer keyboard playing reminiscent of The Doors, Mullins compliments each song with a powerful New Orleans brass kick that elevates 5 Shakes, 7 Spirits from an impressive debut rock album to a radical feast for the ears. If Mullins is in fact the best trombonist playing in New Orleans today, 5 Shakes, 7 Spirits proves it. Through his sheer versatility, Mullins confirms that he is ready to take the trombone to new heights.
“I don’t know if I’m the first person to do this; for all I know some kid in Montana has been playing his trombone through an amp for the past five years,” Mullins says.
Still, Mullins may be the first to demonstrate to a broad audience that trombone rock actually works. Listeners will have to listen to the CD several times before realizing that the sum of its parts cannot simply be described as derivative of one or two influences. Instead, MuleBone’s music reflects not only the Doors or Nirvana, Louis Armstrong or Miles Davis, it ambitiously reflects the entire canon of 20th century American music.
So what are you waiting on? You can now Dig the Bone into the next century as well.
