Search - Tim McDermott :: Louisianthology

Lots of Fun, Lots of Stellar Playing

Patrick Colm Hogan | 01/05/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"OK, I have to admit from the outset that the album has a little bit of an identity problem. It ranges across musical styles so widely that a listener does not know where he or she will end up next.
BUT that's also the fun of it. Some pieces (e.g., McDermott's cartoon-like rendition of "The Stars and Stripes Forever")are laugh-out-loud funny. Others have a more subtle light-heartedness. Still others have an intensity that reminds one of great blues piano masters. Parts of the album could have been done by a New Orleans Jazz version of Frank Zappa (perhaps under the title "Crawfish Rip My Flesh"). Others sound more like Otis Spann. Some seem post-modern in their flippant irony. Others are like a nostalgic look back to the days of the li'l rascals.
McDermott, as always, is technically excellent. His Nightcrawlers Brass Band is in great form, and the other featured musicians (e.g., clarinetist Evan Christopher) are outstanding."

Minor, but funny and enjoyable.

Patrick Colm Hogan | 04/23/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Erstwhile Nightcrawler McDermott has a blast tearing through just about every musical style found in southern Louisiana. This is basically a "for fun" record, and if you listen to it with that in mind, you'll really enjoy it."