A couple of notes before we start.
- If you have no particular sound in mind and you just want to party, then walk down Frenchman or Bourbon St. (yes you can walk around with your drinks here) and walk in wherever looks/sounds fun.
- You can hear brass bands in the mornings at Jackson Square and most nights on Frenchman.
- Many of these venues don’t charge a cover. Please keep this in mind when tipping the band. There are only small number of venues who adequate pay the musicians with a guarantee, so we rely almost entirely on tips from generous visitors like yourself.
- Bring your horn! Folks are totally down to have you sit in on most gigs.
- If you see the Hot Tamale Guy definitely get one. They slap and he’s a treasure of a human being.
- This is obviously biased towards my musical taste and friends. That’s why I have a blog.
Vacationing is too expensive to risk showing up at a random venue and hoping they booked something special that night. As such, my list is entirely bands with weekly gigs who consistently put on a great show.
Monday
The Jump Hounds @ Dragons Den (8-late): Jump-swing dance music at its finest! If you go a 8:00 you can take a swing dance lesson so you’re ready to boogie when the band starts at 9:00. These fellas are incredibly dedicated and have been devoted to this project for severals years now. They truly care about swing music and you can feel it when they play. I’ve had the honor to play with this band a few times and they’re among my favorite gigs I’ve ever played.
Tuesday
Preservation Hall (5:00, 6:15, 7:30, 8:45): Quite possible the most special listening room in the world. You’ll spend an hour in the historic, spiritual epicenter of traditional New Orleans Music (ie: jazz) listening to black elders of the music community play the sonic history of New Orleans. It’ll be soulful, joyous, and deeply human. The best part: absolutely no cell phones. Tuesday nights are my favorite because the touring band plays with Charlie Gabrielle. Say hi to Walter Harris for me if he’s on drums. You need to buy tickets in advance, but trust me it’s worth it. If you can’t make it on Tuesdays that’s okay! They’ve got shows every day of the week.
Bayou Bar @ Pontchartrain Hotel (7:00-10): In my opinion the Bayou Bar is hands down the hippest spot in town now and has been for several months. I’m here at least once a week but usually more. I really thinks it’s THE spot in the city to hear BAM at the highest level possible. Bassist Peter Harris has created something incredible special. There’s music Tue-Fri and each night has a different band. Follow Peter on IG for the lineup. If you want to hear contemporary straight ahead BAM with serious New Orleans soul there’s no better place to be. The food is killin’ too, probably my favorite burger in town.
Trumpet Mafia @ Royal Frenchman Hotel (7:00-1am ): 20 trumpet players with a whole rhythm section blasting your soul to a higher dimension. It really doesn’t get more New Orleans than this. The band plays a whole show and then opens it up for a jam session for the late set. If you wanna hear more about I did a whole group interview with the mafia.
Wednesday
Bayou Bar @ Pontchartrain Hotel (7:00-10): See above. My absolute top suggestion for New Orleans music.
The Rumble @ The Maple Leaf (9-12): The rising generation of must-hear players in New Orleans funk and Mardi Gras Indian music. This band is going places so catch them local while you can.
Thursday
Bayou Bar @ Pontchartrain Hotel (8:00-11) NOTE THE TIME CHANGE: Still the hippest spot in town just an hour later. Thursdays are usually quartet with Ashlin Parker on trumpet.
Friday
Thunderbolt Trio @ Fritzels (6:00-9:00): I’ve played in this power trio for the last six months and we’ve got some serious synergy at this point. Banjo virtuoso Lee Floyd fronts the band alongside Wes Anderson on sousaphone and myself on drums, washboard, and tambourine. It’s traditional New Orleans Jazz but heavily influenced by Lee’s decades working at Disney. It’s fast and furious. We make a whole lot of music for just 3 people and I’m deeply touched by how many people have said we “made their trip”. Catch the show and then ride with me to the Bayou Bar late set.
Bayou Bar @ Pontchartrain Hotel (8:00-11) NOTE THE TIME CHANGE: Still the hippest spot in town just an hour later, and a bit louder because it’s Friday. If you can go earlier in the week do that, but it’s still more than worth it if this is the only night you can go.
Saturday
Thunderbolt Trio @ Fritzels (6:00-9:00): That’s right, back-to-back nights!
Fritzels All-Stars @ … Fritzels (9:00-late): I play alongside a quintet of wonderful players. When the core rhythm section of Ben Fox (bass) and Yoshitaka Z2 (piano) is there we really make some special music happen.
Preservation Hall (2:30, 3:45, 5:00, 6:15, 7:30, 8:45): Again, you MUST see a show here. Saturdays are cool because they’re got discounted matinee shows.
Sunday
Preservation Hall (12:00, 1:15, 2:30, 3:45): A nice option to hit the hall without missing another night show.
Wildlife Band @ Royal Frenchman Hotel (10:00-1am): Grayson Brockcamp (bass/vocals) leads a studded group of players/singers for a regularly angelic night. This is an incredibly unique band playing absurdly beautiful music. A tranquil note to end the week on.
If They’re Playing Don’t Miss Them
They don’t have weekly’s, but these are some of my absolute favorite people and musicians. I would certainly encourage you to follow them on IG and see if they’re playing while you’re in town. You can also check this daily breakdown of all the music in the city to see if any of these names are on there. Any of these could make your whole trip:
Avant Garde
- Extended Trio
- Arura Nealand
- Flaxan
- James Singleton
Singers
- Germain Bazzle (must see!!!)
- Gabrielle Cavassa
- Cyrille Aimée
- Quiana Lynell
- Anna Moss (Handmade Moments)
Drummers
- Shannon Powell (must see!)
- Herlin Riley (most Weds at Bayou Bar)
- Jason Marsalis
- Jamison Ross
- Doug Belote
Brass
- Wendell Brunious
- Kevin Louis
- Soul Rebels Brass Band
- Reverb Brass Band
Party
- DJ Soul Sister (first weekend of the month)