The Dana Abbott Band describes itself as a “modern R&B extravaganza” and that’s accurate: the opening song on their debut EP, “Oo We La La,” is a technical original that sounds exactly like something accidentally left off of Van Morrison’s His Band and the Street Choir album. Remember? The one with the big horn section and the New Orleans-inspired songs? That one. Abbott herself is blessed with a very expressive voice that belts like soul and moves like jazz, which won’t stop those Van comparisons, either.

The other original, the obsessive “You’re Mine,” feels more like Cab Calloway’s band trying on a torch song but the other three songs, all live covers, expand the band’s range even further: Delbert McClinton’s “Blind, Crippled and Crazy” and the Meters’ warhorse “Hey Pocky Way” stick too close to the originals but the Crescent City funk makeover they apply to Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” is impressive indeed. Like a lot of EPs, this debut works better as advert for the band’s show than a stand-alone body of work; but, if that’s true, you probably need to go see this septet while you can still get close to the stage.