One of the more difficult aspects of witnessing this current period of New Orleans cultural life is to watch so many of the rhythm and blues inventors transition to the great Dew Drop Inn in the sky. One consolation is that there are many musicians who have learned from and taken the lessons from those who are gone and are applying it and innovating it on stages and records. Christian Duque and his band Soul Project are one shining example. Christian did some serious hanging with Walter “Wolfman” Washington (a unique individual and musician) and the Roadmasters for many years, and he is now continuing this legacy. No one can equal what Walter did, but Christian has taken that sound and added some modern elements such as rapping an occasional verse over the music as well as widening the New Orleans funk sound by combining it with west coast elements like some Sly and Family Stone. The horns combine with the rhythm section punching in and out like a surprise hit to the gut. Where Walter’s voice could soar and howl, Christian’s has a grit in its New Orleans accents, and that keeps the music grounded. The band lays down hot slabs of funk and keeps it both loose and tight in that way of the best music from here. It’s hard to see our heroes leave here and become ancestors, but with bands like Soul Project taking their music into the future while keeping its basic elements, the future of music in New Orleans is in excellent hands.