April 2022
Cover Story
- Chapel Hart: A Unique and Genuine Country Trio
There’s nothing like them in Nashville or New Orleans. Sisters Danica and Devynn Hart and their first cousin, Trea Swindle, are…
BackTalk
- BackTalk: Michael Cerveris and Kimberly Kaye of Loose Cattle
When I reviewed Loose Cattle’s latest album, Heavy Lifting, released during a brief pandemic hiatus in the early summer of 2021,…
Features
- 'I'm legit, the best': An interview with Alfred Banks
Alfred Banks has always been an underdog. He started rapping as a teenager before working his way to performing with acts… - André Bohren and Electric Yat Quartet bring classical music to the streets
“St. James Infirmary Blues,” a song deeply connected to New Orleans, ends with just a touch of Chopin’s “Funeral March,” the… - Music is everything: Cuban-born percussionist Alexey Marti creates his own style
“Yeah, this is my hometown,” declares the remarkably talented Cuban-born percussionist and composer Alexey Marti, who has now lived in New… - The Big 6 Brass Band is the street sound of New Orleans
The Big 6 Brass Band took off flying when the group was formed in 2017. It jumped into the arena by… - My Music with Raphaël Bas
Guitarist and harmonica player Raphaël Bas grew up in Bourges, France. Bas moved to New Orleans and incorporated the sounds of… - Swashbucking Outlaw: Rickie Lee Jones makes her French Quarter Festival debut
When Rickie Lee Jones finally makes her debut at the thrice-delayed French Quarter Fest, she’ll be warmed up and rarin’ to… - Joyful and swinging: Steve Pistorius is an advocate for the preservation of traditional jazz
Traditional New Orleans jazz has taken pianist Steve Pistorius all over the world, from New York to Singapore to the Galapagos… - Light It Up: New Orleans classic R&B singer Vegas Cola makes her French Quarter Festival debut
Vegas Cola grew up in Treme, one of New Orleans’ historic and famously musical neighborhoods. A singer, songwriter and bandleader, she…
Fresh
- 2022 French Quarter Festival Food Roundup
After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the French Quarter Festival is returning April 21-24. Not only is the music… - Music Quest: Vintage vinyl treasures are out there for the taking (Episode 13)
This month’s collection of five vintage vinyl albums represents yet another eclectic mix of unique artists, but it turns out that…
Dining Out
- Dining Out: Broussard's Restaurant
For more than 100 years, Broussard’s Restaurant has been a New Orleans institution known for its French-Creole cuisine and historic French…
Obituaries
- In Memoriam: John Swenson (1950-2022)
John Swenson, writer and contributing editor of OffBeat, a longtime friend of the staff and a New Orleans music lover, passed… - In Memoriam: "Grandpa" Elliott Small (1944–2022)
Street musician, harp player and vocalist “Grandpa” Elliott Small was a staple performer on the corner of Royal and Toulouse streets… - In Memoriam: Kevin O'Day (1973–2022)
Kevin O’Day, a journeyman drummer who played and recorded with an astonishing array of musicians across genres and decades in New…
Reviews
- André Bohren, Resonance (Independent)
André Bohren has been playing classical piano for many years. Since I have a love for classical music, whenever Spencer Bohren… - Calvin Johnson Jr., Notes of a Native Son (Independent)
Many people would agree that musicians from New Orleans move among genres more than in most locales. It could be said… - Sabertooth Swing, Delta Bound (Fairground Records)
Nothing against the music on Delta Bound, which presents an ambitious illustration of half a millennium of violent racial and cultural conflict… - Beau Bayou & Sabine Connection, Just Doin' Me (Independent)
The sophomore effort from Beau Bayou & Sabine Connection will likely keep the momentum going from its 2019 debut, True to… - Malevitus, Malevitus (Houma Records)
For a four-piece rock ’n’ roll band, there is a lot going on in this album. Originally released as an independent… - Tom Andes, Static on Every Station (Independent)
Initially, Louis Maistros’ cover shot of a watchful Buddha statue on Tom Andes’ EP debut seems enigmatic since it implies an…
