Trombone swagger

Trombone swagger

It’s probably just a coincidence, this New Orleans resurgence in popular culture and this FRF 2010 gig by Try Andrews, a.k.a. Trombone Shorty, who as it happens comes from the New Orleans neighborhood Treme, which is also the name of the new HBO series by the producers of The Wire. At any rate, Shorty’s got the chops, and for a jazz band leader, he’s also got a fairly unusual and un-jazz-like swagger, an attitude that fits a lot better with hip hop. Coming out with the shades, I kept thinking Jay Z….with a trombone.

The first number was a funky fusion joint, but the second moved into even weirder territory with buzz-saw guitars from the 25-ish white boy guitar player in a Rolling Stones t-shirt. It sounded almost like “American Woman”. By the third tune, an original called “Suburbia”, the guitar was almost in Metallica territory, but still, there was absolutely no doubt that this was a brass band at it’s core. It was like thrash cumbia or something. The whole time, I couldn’t help thinking, what an awesome warmup for Fishbone!