The fine folks at Festival Productions got anticipation rising and tongues wagging when the day-to-day schedule was released several hours ago. The annual festival, April 22—May 1 this year, always has something for everyone’s musical taste, but also always manages to get pundits pontificating about who was left off the lineup, who shouldn’t be on the lineup, and every other tidbit of musical minutia.
The top ten acts on the list support that inclusive notion—Stevie Wonder, Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Neil Young, Snoop Dog, Paul Simon, Steely Dan, Beck, Van Morrison and Nick Jonas—but digging deeper into the daily schedule reveals the intricacies of the lineup, its fidelity to its mission of supporting New Orleans and Louisiana music even in these changing times, and some true hidden gems.
Consider DéDé Saint-Prix of Martinique. Few have heard of this Caribbean music legend—he is one of the inventors of the high-energy dance music called zouk. But his booking ties the festival back to its roots in the early 1980s when it began stretching the genre limits inherent to a festival in New Orleans. Back then they brought in Malavoi, a string band from Martinique, that blew away a crowd with celebrities like David Byrne and Paul Simon in attendance.
Another facet of the festival that is significant is their focus on bringing together bands that rarely play together. Consider bassist Tony Hall’s Soul Stars—a tribute to James Brown—or Nicholas Payton & Afro-Caribbean Mixtape with Vincente Archer, Joe Dyson, and Daniel Sadownick.
I saw the Soul Stars last year and they kept a crowd moving even as the rain pelted down. They haven’t played since. Payton’s new project is new to my eyes, but it will certainly be compelling even if it’s a one-off, not repeated until next year, if at all.
Dig deep into the schedule and you will find even more gems. Happy hunting and see you at the fest!
