Words Lawrence Brown
CULTURE / MUSIC · SPRING 2018
I went to Funk Party 15 on a chilly Friday night in May where I met up with Chicago native Chris Neal, (tenor sax and vocals) and the Low-Down Brass Band as they played at Funk Party l5.
“Low Down Brass Band” combines the stylish flair of funk, the smooth beats of reggae, the power of soul music, the spontaneity of jazz, mixing it in with flavors from New Orleans and the edge of Chicago hip hop. “Lowdown Brass Band” is a dichotomy of grit and class.
They make it almost impossible to not dance. Simply hearing them is incredible, but being able to stand and watch the effect of their powerful instruments as they move and groove, elevates the whole experience.
The “Funk Party l5” site has to have its own props in this story. This mysteriously underground, yet well-known party, is held in an expansive loft in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. While very nondescript on the outside, the inside was anything but. After navigating my through what seemed to be some sort of maze, walking up and down stairs and around corners, I was pleasantly surprised by what I had walked into. Art filled the walls and empty spaces of the 4000+ square foot top floor loft. Immediately I was consumed by the energy and vibe of the room. A DJ sat atop a manmade DJ booth setting the pace for night as the room began to fill. Describing the crowd as eclectic or diverse would be an undervalued depiction of the colorful, beautiful and extremely friendly souls in attendance. You could feel the love in the building which set the perfect tone for the high-energy party starters “Lowdown Brass Band”.
Neal, like all of “Low Down Brass Band” members, has a full-time day job. He’s a Chicago school teacher, married to wife Abby and is the proud father of two little girls Lorraine (6.5 years old) and Isabel (3.5 years old). Because Neal and the others are also involved in more than one music group, achieving work/life balance is not easy but mandatory in order to maintain their labor of love with “Low Down Brass Band”.
“This is the band that we all decided to invest the most in and make the most sacrifices for. Its not just anyone’s band, its our band.”
Neal shared a little insight into the group’s process for creating new materials.
“Where most cats have the tunes written down or recorded and then bring them into a rehearsal, with us, with our original material, we listen and/ or read it, then collectively start tweaking and shaping compositions where needed. That being said we do have some gems in the repertoire that were written driving down the highway to and from gigs.”
Neal refers to their drive and write technique as “Road magic!” “Lowdown Brass Band” was born 15 years ago as the brainchild of Lance Loiselle (sousaphone) and bandleader, Dave Levine (Baritone Sax and Vocals). The band has come along way since starting out as a New Orleans cover band. As they fine-tuned their sounds and creative methods, they made the brilliant decision of adding MC Billa Camp (rhymes and vocals). Today, at full strength, the band consists of 11 “players”, including Chris Neal- Tenor Sax and vocals, Shane Jonas- Trumpet and vocals,Sam Johnson- Trumpet,Andrew Zelm- Trombone, Raphael Crawford- Trombone,Steve Duncan- Trombone,John Barbush- Drums, and Mike August- Drums, all adding their own style.
They do have the ability to scale down to 6-8, depending on location or gig needs. With 3 full-length albums ((“Lowdown Brass Band’, “Lowdown Sounds”, “Lowdown Breaks”), one EP album, (“We Just Wanna Be”) and one 45 (collaboration with “New Orleans Bounce” artist Ricky B, called (“Ponder This”) under their belts, LDB shows no signs of stopping.
Neal summed up what it is that Low Down Brass Band has:
“The feeling ultimately comes from love. From there we’re just trying to get happy and make people feel good.“
That’s exactly what I saw on that Friday night; lots of love, happiness, good vibes. one of the best nights I’ve had in years, excluding the birth of my son, Lawrence Brown III. Shout out!
“Lowdown Brass Band” will be celebrating their fifteen year anniversary in September at Avondale’s Sleeping Village. For more information on the “Lowdown Brass Band”, go to lowdownbrassband.com. For booking information, email loganartistagency@gmail.com
Creative credits
- Written by
- Lawrence Brown
- Photography
- Sam Auger
