The Dustbowl Revival with Jim Lauderdale Come to NYC, 6/30

Over the past few years, the Dustbowl Revival has been making a name for itself with a vibrant mix of vintage Americana sounds. Critics have proclaimed that this eclectic eight-piece "would have sounded utterly at home within the hallowed confines of Preservation Hall in New Orleans' French Quarter" (Los Angeles Times) and their "upbeat, old-school, All-American sonic safaris exemplify everything shows should be: hot, spontaneous, engaging and, best of all, a pleasure to hear" (L.A. Weekly).

Rob Sheffield, in Rolling Stone, hailed them as a great band "whose Americana swing was so fun I went back to see them again the next day."Their new eponymous album, due out on Signature Sounds on June 16, 2017, however, finds the Los Angeles-based ensemble evolving and refining its music. Their always-joyous sound now reveals a more soulful, funky side that exudes deeper emotions and taps a more modern vibe. This exhilarating new sound jumps out on the album's opening tracks, "Call My Name" and "If I You Could See Me Now."

Drummer Joshlyn Heffernan and bassist James Klopfleisch lay down a righteous groove that trumpeter Matt Rubin and trombonist Ulf Bjorlin supercharge with their big blasts of horns. This Stax-style soul builds to a pair of showstoppers: "Good Egg" and "The Story." The former is a dynamic number that showcases Liz Beebe's sexy, full-throttled vocals as well as Bjorlin's dirty trombone solo). On "The Story," Beebe teams with band founder Zach Lupetin for an emotionally charged love song that features some infectious interplay between the horn players and the string-men (mandolinist Daniel Mark and fiddler Connor Vance).

The album's first single, "Busted," also exemplifies the sonic leap taken by the band. Spotlighted by Beebe's slinky jazz vocals, the song mixes traditional American music styles, like the blast of R&B horns and the in-the-pocket drums, with some inventive touches, such as a mandolin plucked like a hip-hop inspired piano, and the upright bass and fiddle played through wah-peddles. The group has said that recording "Busted" was like a door opening for them to create something familiar yet stylistically fresh.Even the album's more acoustic number, like "Debtors' Prison" and "Got Over," aren't as old-timey as they might first appear. "Debtors' Prison" initially suggests a throwback busker tune, but a closer listen reveals an all-too-contemporary ode with Lupetin singing about the struggles of trying to survive in today's troubled economic times. Similarly, on "Got Over," Lupetin delivers another modern-day portrait about a scuffed-up soul battling a whirl of problems who winds up "sitting on the kitchen floor ... eating all the ice cream, 2 a.m. on a Tuesday." Things get a little more optimistic on the sunnier,

Bill Withers-inspired "Honey I Love You." Featuring a guest spot by multi-Grammy-winner and fellow genre-bender Keb' Mo', this track serves up a timeless slice of sweet, silky soul music. The evolution in the band's sound has been very much an organic one. Since Signature Sounds released their last album, With a Lampshade On, the Dustbowl Revival has been out on the road, winning over audiences with their free-flowing, joyous live performances. After playing more than 200 shows a year during the last four years, the Dustbowl Revival came to realize that they had outgrown the confining label of a retro-minded band playing music from a bygone era and needed to move in new directions. To help them achieve their adventurous musical vision, the band turned to the Grammy Award-winning producer Ted Hutt, who brought with him a background of working with a musically diverse set of acts. A founding member of Irish-American Celtic punk band Flogging Molly, Hutt has not only produced punk groups like Dropkick Murphys and the Bouncing Souls, but also the progressive acoustic outfit Old Crow Medicine Show (whose 2014 release Remedy earned Hutt the Grammy), Memphis Americana rockers Lucero and New York City roots troubadour Jesse Malin. With Hutt's assistance, the Dustbowl Revival created what they have called "the tightest, funkiest thing we've ever attempted." 2017 marks the tenth anniversary of the Dustbowl Revival's formation.

It was back in 2007 when Lupetin, a Midwestern transplant to Los Angeles, posted an ad in Craigslist in hopes of creating a group inspired by brass band and string band traditions. Over the years, the group has been an inclusive outfit that frequently shifted in size before solidifying in its current eight-piece lineup.In 2008, Zach Lupetin and the Dustbowl Revival released their debut album, The Atomic Mushroom Cloud of Love. They followed up in 2010 with You Can't Go Back to the Garden of Eden, which included "Dan's Jam," a song that won the Independent Music Awards' "Americana Song of the Year." The next year, the band, now known just as the Dustbowl Revival, put out Holy Ghost EP and their 2013 Carry Me Home CD featured more than 25 Dustbowl Revival-ists. That was also the year the L.A. Weekly crowned them the city's "Best Live Band."

The Dustbowl Revival found a bigger audience when Signature Sounds released With a LampshadeOn in 2015. The video for "Never Had To Go," starring band fan Dick Van Dyke, became an Internet sensation. The group went on to open for bands ranging from Lake Street Dive to the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, while also appearing at such festivals as Delfest, Floydfest, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, and, more recently, Norway's Bergenfest and Tonderfest in Denmark.This new album reveals the band moving in an exciting new direction. Instead of Dixieland jazz and Depression-era folk songs serving as musical mile markers, this CD mines an energizing vein of soul, funk and roots-infused rock that evokes the work of Fleetwood Mac, Paul Simon, Aretha Franklin and classic Stax recordings, and fits the band alongside such contemporaries as Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats and St. Paul & the BroKen Bones.

Tour dates:

Wed., April 26 PHILADELPHIA, PA Johnny Brendas

Thurs., April 27 WESTERLY, RI Knickerbocker Music Center

Fri., April 28 TURNERS FALLS Shea Theater

Sat., April 29 BALTIMORE, MD Charm City Folk and Bluegrass

Sun., April 30 ITHACA, NY The Haunt

Tues., May 2 SARANAC LAKE, NY Waterhole Music Lounge

Wed., May 3 S. BURLINGTON, VT Higher Ground Showcase Lounge

Thurs., May 4 FAIRFIELD, CT StageOne

Fri., May 5 PORTLAND, ME Port City Music Hall

Sat., May 6 ROCKLAND, ME The Historic Strand Theatre

Sun., May 7 EXETER, NH The Word Barn

Fri., May 12 SACRAMENTO, CA Harlow's

Sat., May 13 VALLECITO, CA Twisted Oak Winery Concert Series

Fri., May 19 BUELLTON, CA Standing Sun Live in the Winery

Sat., May 20 SAN FRANCISCO, CA The Fillmore

Sat., May 27 DENVER, CO Denver Day of Rock

Tues., May 30 BELLINGHAM, WA The Green Frog Acoustic Tavern

Wed., May 31 VANCOUVER, BC Arts Club Theatre Company - Backstage Lounge

Thurs., June 1 SEATTLE, WA The Tractor Tavern

Fri., June 2 PORTLAND, OR Mississippi Studios

Sat., June 3 EUGENE, OR HiFi Music Lounge

Sun., June 4 FELTON, CA The Redwood Mountain Faire

Fri., June 9 NEDERLAND, CO The Caribou Room

Sat., June 10 PALISADE, CO The Palisade Bluegrass & Roots Festival

Sun., June 11 PAGOSA SPRINGS, CO Pagosa Folk 'n' Bluegrass Festival

Tues., June 13 VAIL, CO Crazy Mountain Brewery Hot Summer Nights Concert Series

Sat., June 17 LOS ANGELES, CA Teragram Ballroom

Sun.,June 18 SAN DIEGO, CA Casbah

Mon., June 19 CLAREMONT, CA Scripps College

Wed., June 21 LASALLE, IL Uptown Grille

Thurs., June 22 EVANSTON / CHICAGO, IL Space

Fri., June 23 OWENSBORO, KY ROMP Fest

Sat., June 24 NASHVILLE, TN The Cornelia Fort Pickin' Party

Sun., June 25 JOHNSON CITY, TN The Down Home

Mon., June 26 COLUMBUS, OH Woodlands Tavern

Tues., June 27 CLEVELAND, OH Beachland Ballroom & Tavern

Thurs., June 29 ROCHESTER, NY Montage

Fri., June 30 NEW YORK, NY City Winery

Mon., July 3 PORTLAND, OR WaterFront Blues Festival

Wed., July 5 MINNEAPOLIS, MN TheDakota

Thurs., July 6 MADISON, WI The Edgewater

Fri., July 7 ANN ARBOR, MI The Ark

Sat., July 8 HARBOR SPRINGS, MI Blissfest

Wed., July 12 CINCINNATI, OH The Ballroom at the Taft Theatre

Fri., July 14 MOUNT SOLON, VA Red Wing Roots Music Festival

Sun., July 16 GREENFIELD, MA Green River Festival

Thurs., July 20 SQUAW VALLEY, CA Wanderlust Festival

Sat., July 22 SANTA MARIA, CA Presqu'ile Winery

Fri., July 28 CALGARY, AB Calgary Folk Fest

Sat., Aug. 5 LOS ANGELES, CA Mountain Gate Country Club

Thurs., Aug. 10 DENVER, CO Levitt Pavilion

Fri., Aug. 11 WILLITS, CA Uncle John's Rendezvous

Sat., Aug. 12 DENVER, CO Levitt Pavilion

Tues., Aug. 15 RIDGEFIELD, CT Ballard Park

Wed., Aug. 16 WOODBRIDGE, NJ Music on Main Street

Thurs., Aug. 17 BOSTON, MA Brighton Music Hall

Fri., Aug. 18 PHILADELPHIA, PA World Café Live (Downstairs)

Sat., Aug. 19 COCKEYSVILLE, MD Oregon Ridge Park

Thurs., Aug. 24 TONDER, DENMARK Tonder Festival

Thurs., Sept. 7 SISTERS, OR Sisters Folk Fest

Tues., Sept. 12 COOS BAY, OR Music on the Bay

Sat., Sept. 16 MONTAUK, NY The Great Eastern Music Fest

Sun., Sept. 17 BRISTOL, TN Bristol Rhythm & Roots

Fri., Nov. 3 LOS ANGELES, CA York Manor in Highland Park

Wed., Nov. 8 ST. AUGUSTINE, FL St. Augustine Amphitheatre - Front Porch Stage

Thurs., Nov. 9 BROOKSVILLE, FL Riverhawk Festival

Fri., Jan. 5, 2018 TEMECULA, CA Old Town Temecula Community Theater