Red Lotus Revue

I should be promoting my band, Cadillac Wreckers in this space, but I have to tell you about a fantastic local band my friends Karl, Pete, Jimmy and Kurt have put together called Red Lotus Revue.
 

Karl and the guys just released a new EP CD and I felt moved to write a review for it. Yes folks, this is a Red Lotus Revue Review. Brace yourselves- I really like this band:

Combining influences from Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson (Rice Miller), Matt ‘Guitar’ Murphy, Hubert Sumlin, Muddy Waters and others, Red Lotus Revue absolutely reeks of vintage, low-down Blues from the earliest plugged-in days in Chicago. Choosing a novel four-piece line-up of harmonica, two guitars (Jimmie Zollo and Chicago native Pete Fazzini) and drums (Kurt Kalker) Red Lotus Revue doesn’t use a bassist, and surprisingly to some, the absence is not missed. Instead, Fazzini and Zollo share the job using their guitars, and trade-off on strong traditional rhythm playing and tasty fills and solos to boot. Both guitarists are very capable soloists and stylists in their own right, and clearly put aside their egos to play for the music on this CD - to marvelous effect.

Red Lotus Revue plays early Blues music like they were there at the time. The band’s approach and execution are so authentic, one is tempted to think of them as a tribute band – every nuance is in place just as it would have been back in the day. Although a young band (in terms of the players’ ages as well as the band’s ‘born on’ date), they are quickly becoming a very tight unit with over 60 dates to their credit in less than a year. The recent addition of Kurt Kalker on this disc really pulls them together, too. His mastery of rhythm is both strong and subtle at the same time, and perfect for the ensemble (and the music).

It’s always been my opinion that Blues bands need a stylist to lead them, a formidable and unique character for the band to form an identity around, and Karl Cabbage - through his personal and musical approach, his reverence for the art-form, and both his vocal and instrumental style - is just the man for the job. Whether channeling Sonny Boy or Walter, Karl knows the material and feels it to his marrow, and that comes through in his playing quite plainly. Further, Karl’s vocals are quirky, unique, heartfelt and signature to the band’s sound.

If you dig the old Chess, Checker, Silvertone, or other vinyl recordings and want to hear that exact sound from a living, breathing ensemble, look no further: Red Lotus Revue does an outstanding job of capturing that old low-fi sound, and masters the approach to deliver a savory dish of vintage Blues you’ll scarcely hear anyone making today. Their live shows will transport you back in time 60 years, and so will this CD. I whole-heartedly recommend this album to anyone who already loves the vintage style of Chicago Blues that Muddy Waters helped bring to life.

More importantly though, I recommend this disc to those latter-day players who learned the Blues from British Rockers, Popsters or Texas Guitar Slingers (you know who you are)  – you’ll learn a lot about a subtle turn of phrase, how to swing, and how to play music with feeling and without crushing volume levels, overbearing bass, and overpowering drums.

This, in my opinion is Blues music Muddy would respect.

Hey, and NEWS FLASH - we've just booked a really special gig with them at Dizzy's on Oct 1st! I've been calling this show (in my head) Lowdown to Uptown because Karl's band plays such great down and dirty Blues and Cadillac Wreckers plays more in a Jump style (sometimes associated more with uptown Jazz influences). We'll be turning the old warehouse on Seventh into a Speakeasy - JukeJoint and presenting a historical look back at this Vintage American Roots Music the two bands specialize in. We're focusing the show on songs from as far back as the '30s, all the way up into the '60s, and serving them up like they're supposed to be played - with feeling, soulful intent, swing and real grasp of the nuance and subtleties of our uniquely American Art-form. I hope you'll mark your calendar for October 1st, and come downtown to Dizzy's to experience a really unique and special show.

Source: http://chromatonic.blogspot.com/2010/08/red-lotus-revue.html