From the bottom of the boot, baby! Sean Ardoin is now a three-time Grammy nominee with this riveting live recording from last July’s inaugural NOLA Zydeco Fest at the New Orleans Jazz Museum. Though most selections should be familiar, if not ingrained in the craniums of ardent Ardoin fans, that’s not the point. What’s really on tap here is an off-the-charts performance that showcases Ardoin’s consummate showmanship, underrated vocals and his band’s ability to sprint with its tireless front man.

The grandiose, rocked-up, hyped-up intro does its job. It gets you wondering what could possibly be next. Ardoin hits the ground running with his signature tune “Came Thru Pullin’” and works through an entertaining smattering of material from his last three studio albums done in what he dubs “kreole, rock and soul.” It still has the danceable zydeco beat but it’s much more diverse, layered and complex than the rawer variety Ardoin was weaned on.

Except for “Mama,” a song written by rap artist LunchMoney Lewis, the proceedings are also a reminder of the clever tunes Ardoin has written and arranged over the years since his emergence as a solo artist in the late ’90s. 

“Kick Rocks” is aimed at head-bobbing, hair-shaking guitar freaks. The insane energy of “Kool Rollin’” would challenge the fittest aerobics class while the thumpety-thumpin’ “Dance the Night Away” from Ardoin’s 2020 album Coronocation Relationships will likely appeal to the club set. With lush background vocals and keyboards, “Rollercoaster” is a prime example of how Ardoin can build the swirling sentiment of a beautiful ballad into a satisfying closure.

Ardoin closes with “Keep On Moving,” a sunny song performed on Good Morning America in October 2020 with rubboard-scrapping son Sean David MSX. Besides being turbocharged and undeniably infectious, the song has a moral to the story—live your life the truest, keep moving and those overhanging dark clouds will roll away.