BY KATHERINE CARR
kecarr@go.olemiss.edu
UMISSO
The band plays music from a wide range of genres including Caribbean, jazz, funk, classical and popular music. They also include a percussion section called “the engine room” which includes a drum set, congas, a brake drum, a tube shaker and several other accompaniments. Members come from all over Mississippi and other areas of the country and world including Spain, Ecuador, Texas and Canada.
Blue Mountain
In 2008 they released two albums. “Midnight in Mississippi” is an album of all-original material, and “Omnibus” is an album with rerecorded tracks from previous releases. Blue Mountain has toured extensively throughout the years, supported by a fervent following.
Information from bluemountainband.net
Stooges Brass Band
Stooges Brass Band is a high-energy band that has been playing its balance of traditional and modern New Orleans-style music since 1996. They toured extensively across the country at clubs and festivals such as Bonnaroo, South by Southwest, the Utah Arts Festival, Discover Jazz Festival, American Folk Festival, High Sierra Music Festival and Great American Brass Band Festival, among others.
Lee Fields & the Expressions
In his 43-year career, he has played and collaborated with the likes of Kool & the Gang, Sammy Gordon & the Hip Huggers, O.V. Wright, Darrell Banks, Little Royal and Martin Solveig. In his repertoire music can be found described as James Brown-style funk, lo-fi blues, contemporary Southern soul and even house music.
Information from leefieldsandtheexpressions.com
Chimney Choir
Chimney Choir skillfully interweaves genres resulting in a “folk meets world music sound, steeped in psychedelia,” according to music agency Concerted Efforts. All multi-instrumentalists, writers and singers, Kevin Larkin, David Rynhart and Kris Drickey change instruments (sometimes within a song) and sing in three-part harmony all while balancing field recordings and computer synths with traditional acoustic instrumentation.
Information from chimneychoir.com
Shannon McNally
Shannon McNally began playing music while attending college, playing at coffeehouses and busking. She grew up in Long Island, N.Y., and was heavily impacted by her parents’ record collection, which held a lot of folk and blues, such as Bob Dylan, Lead Belly, Emmylou Harris and Nina Simone. Since then, she has expanded to playing soul, jazz, electric blues and rock.
Kopecky Family Band
Kelsey Kopecky and Gabriel Simon founded Kopecky Family Band in 2007. Joined by four friends, they have formed a family through hard work, many miles traveled together and the making of their unique sound. The band makes use of many instruments, including tambourines, guitars, percussion, strings and horns, which they interchange seamlessly and as symbol of the bond that flows between them.
J. Roddy Walston and the Business
Band members include Billy C. Gordon on guitar, J. Roddy Walston, who plays piano and guitar, Steve “The Sleeve” Colmus on drums and Logan Davis, who mans the bass. Claiming Baltimore, Md., as their hometown, the band draws influence from musicians such as Mungo Jerry, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, Harry Nilsson, Huey Lewis and the News, Bob Dylan and Queen, among others.
Eric Deaton Trio
Eric Deaton Trio is one of the many musical projects of blues guitarist, singer and songwriter Eric Deaton. Deaton plays a mixture of both traditional and original North Mississippi hill country blues songs with funk, electric and West African flavors.
Drive-by Truckers
Drive-By Truckers, founded by Mike Cooley and Patterson Hood in Athens, Ga., has been active since 1996. Although the band was founded in Georgia, the group identifies very strongly with Alabama, the state where many of the members have their roots, and this is reflected in their music, which has a distinct Southern sound.
