Preview: Hot 8 Brass Band @ Rich Mix (London, 1st June 2016)
Blending hip-hop, jazz and funk styles with the iconic sounds of New Orleans brass, bring your big brash boogie boots to Rich Mix next week, the Hot 8 Brass Band are in town.
Formed by Bennie Pete, Jerome Jones, and Harry Cook in 1995, The Hot 8 not only merged two earlier bands – the Looney Tunes Brass Band and the High Steppers Brass Band – but have merged swaggering jazz and second line strut with a straight up hip-hop attitude. With a stream of inventive songs and ideas being introduced by various band members over the years, The Hot 8’s funk style is a blend of influences from the Dirty Dozen and Rebirth, with more elements of contemporary r&b, rap, and its local variation, “bounce”.
Yet, tragically, The Hot 8’s story is not only one of originality. Over the years the band’s ranks have been decimated by the deaths of four original members due to street violence and illness. On top of these heartbreaks, Hurricane Katrina was a life-altering turning point – Katrina’s wrath causing the bands evacuation, displacement, and scattering across the US.
Yet, out of the ashes, new life was born. Long-term displacement across the country helped members of the band realise just how unique and special New Orleans culture is, inspiring their desire to learn more about the history, sound, and style of earlier brass bands. The band regrouped and began touring the United States to encourage and support other displaced Katrina victims and promote New Orleans’ recovery.
Now one of the most popular and visible funk-style brass bands, The Hot 8 typify the uniting abilities of music and embody the raw essence of New Orleans. Famous for playing all day in the sun, then hopping to a club gig and playing through the night, what is even more special than the band’s enduring spirit and boundless energy are the sounds they coax from their well-loved, well-worn horns. As Hot 8 band leader Bennie Pete puts it, “Hot 8 music is feel good music…music with a message. It’s life music!”.
Out Of Africa – An in-depth trip throughout world music and global beats from an African perspective!! As an intro for this show, we kick off with Cochemea (“All My Relations”) …we then travel to the blues by the Bongo Ikwe, from Nigeria…as some say, the blues came from Africa,…
At times, we are the first to lose track of how many exciting music events happen in London each month, so we have decided to offer you some sort of “public musical service”, meant for all the locals and passers-by, with the aim of suggesting where to listen to some…
For three days and nights there will be a wave of eclectic live music, DJ’s and Q&A sessions across Camden. Ranging from spoken word to dancehall, math-rock to afrobeat – all with an experimental and original flare. The main headliners include Michael Kiwanuka, Róisín Murphy, Kate Tempest, and Mike Skinner,…
A big revelry for exciting Brighton-based independent label Tru Thoughts, as they celebrated their coming-of-age with a punching all-day party! Full of friends and fans, there were queues to see their newest acts that not even a wink or a press pass could sneak you through. A sign that they…
The last decade has seen a shift in the role of record labels in the music industry. More artists are choosing to sign with independent labels to maintain creative collaborative control. Tru-Thoughts are a UK indie label based in Brighton, created in 1999. Praised by Gilles Peterson, they have a…
The concept of an outdoor jazz festival hardly conjures images of glitter-filled Glastonbury excitement, a young hip crowd and dance-fuelled elation. However, previously exclusive jazz appears to be undergoing a fashion revolution and the grounds of Glynde Place hinted at this. Love Supreme, the UK’s only three-day greenfield jazz festival…
Welcomed by a packed and doting Electric Brixton, The Hot 8 Brass Band met expectations: larger than life, feel-good and undoubtedly, infectiously groovy. Before the brassy boy entered, the muso Brixton crowd were well warmed with the reggae delights of the Ragga Twins. From their straight-up Jamaican vibes, to their…
WOMAD UK 2016 edition will also be the 10th on the grounds of Charlton Park, that’ why the organisers are already going all out to celebrate the anniversary… You just have to take a glance at the first name announced for the upcoming 34th edition of the event, which will take…
I would love to be in London for this show!
I’ve seen The Hot 8 Brass Band in Brooklyn. They know how to make a fun party!
I think the best place to hear them live would be New Orleans or England. It’s really cool to see them get such a warm reception in the UK.
I would love to be in London for this show!
I’ve seen The Hot 8 Brass Band in Brooklyn. They know how to make a fun party!
I think the best place to hear them live would be New Orleans or England. It’s really cool to see them get such a warm reception in the UK.