Album Stream: Tuba Skinny ‘Garbage Man’
Every listener has their soft spots. Certain sounds, when stroked, squealed or sung in a particular manner, do it every time. We can safely rely upon these sounds, like the best comfort foods, to guide us through an ugly break-up or a string of shitty luck. We bring other sounds out for celebrations, to ease a hangover or complement a good buzz.
For several years now, the succulent songs of the Crescent City have remained my auditory comfort food of choice. I am particularly taken with the post Professor Longhair era of New Orleans, featuring artists like Lee Dorsey, Ernie K-Doe, Dave Bartholomew, Allen Toussaint, Irma Thomas, Benny Spellman and others. Together, these musicians accounted for a golden era of soul and funk rivaled only by Detroit’s Motown and Chicago’s Chess Records.
Tuba Skinny harkens back to an earlier era in N’awlins. The one that the city is arguably most famous for: dixieland. On their January release Garbage Man, the six-piece band sends listeners on a tour through 1920s-30s blues and jazz. Since they formed on the streets of New Orleans in 2009, Tuba Skinny has managed to revisit this era in a way that never feels stale or played out like their counterparts the Preservation Hall Jazz Band can sound at times.
Stream Garbage Man in its entirety below. Purchase the album for $10 HERE.
Written by Rob Peoni
New Video: The Black Keys “Lonely Boy”
Check out the debut single “Lonely Boy” from The Keys’ upcoming album El Camino. The album was produced by Danger Mouse. It is the first time the Akron, OH duo has worked with the producer since 2008’s Attack and Release. Click play below and enjoy the dance moves. I, for one, plan on stealing each and every one of them.
Written by Rob Peoni
Thought on Tracks 
Video: Alabama Shakes “Hold On” & “You Ain’t Alone”
The Alabama Shakes will be playing at Radio Radio on Wednesday, December 14th. Tickets are $10. I suggest you act swiftly Indianapolis, as this will likely be the last time you will ever have the chance to see this band for such a moderate price. And it’s sure as shit the last time you’ll ever see them in a venue as small and intimate as Fountain Square’s Radio Radio.
This Athens, AL quartet is winning over crowds all over the country of late. Their performance at Jack White’s Third Man Records during Next Big Nashville’s Soundland music festival in September was a consensus critic favorite. A couple of weeks ago, they followed suit by knocking the socks off of a packed Bowery Ballroom as part of CMJ Music Marathon in NYC. The New York Times’ Jon Pareles had this to say:
“But some of CMJ’s best moments this year looked even further back: toward roots-rock, far away from laptops, concepts and surface cleverness. The Texas bluesman Gary Clark Jr. played sets that were simply incendiary, following bleak sentiments with slashing guitar solos. And a band called Alabama Shakes, led by a bespectacled songwriter and guitarist, Brittany Howard, harked back to the fervor and smoldering drama of 1960s Southern soul and left its audience screaming for more. They were working CMJ the old-fashioned way: making converts with sheer live impact, now letting the Internet multiply the word of mouth.”
Pareles drives home the point that this band is beyond buzzworthy. This is whiskey drenched, headboard rattling, soulful rock n’ roll. Watch below for evidence. The top video was recorded at Pegasus Records as part of the Live from the Shoals video series. Watch “Hold On”:
Below is a music video for the song “You Ain’t Alone” featuring footage from The Alabama Shakes’ performance at Chattanooga’s Track 29. The video was directed by Joshua Shoemaker. Both songs are featured on the band’s debut self-titled EP: Album Stream – Alabama Shakes. Do not sleep on this show Indianapolis. Get to Fountain Square on December 14th or risk kicking yourself come Christmas.
Written by Rob Peoni