Photo Blog: Toubab Krewe at the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor
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(Photos by Erin Slayter, Text by Benjamin Slayter)
E and I caught up with Toubab Krewe on a cold, dark night in Ann Arbor where we arrived early enough to snag a stage-side seat in the classic Michigan bar venue. TK’s setup looked cramped on the small stage.
If you’ve never been exposed to TK before, they are as diverse a group as you could imagine. Justin Perkins was about ten feet from me across a bar rail, his Kamelngoni (think african banjo – it’s thought to have been the ancestor of the american banjo) and Kora (think blues guitar made with a huge gourd cut in half, covered in cow skin) next to a traditional electric guitar and a couple of drums.
Behind him sat percussionist Luke Quaranta with a bevy of congas, animal skinned drums, and the rest of his arsenal. Drummer Vic Stafford (who replaced co-founder Teal Brown this year) was crammed into the back corner facing stage right.
Drew Heller danced between a piano keyboard, his guitar and fiddle, sometimes exchanging places with bassist/guitarist David Pransky. Visually, even in the dimly lit confines of the Blind Pig, they are an amazing sight.
I imagine this music coming out of a bar in Mali as much as their Asheville, NC hometown. Having honed their edge around the world and at pretty much every major US festival, each track is tight, practiced, and performed with the nuance that comes from mastering these unique instruments. When you relax into the minor key differences between their music and traditional “jam bands”, you begin to understand the underlying roots of tribal and southeastern influences, impressing your ears and soul.
If you appreciate music in all of its forms, you’ll love their passion and playing style. Seeing the precision and concentration necessary to pull off a quick picking on a Kora is quite amazing from ten feet away.
I recorded a bit of sound too:
I look forward to seeing them play again to a much larger crowd, and would definitely recommend you hit up their shows as they close out 2011 in Charleston, Greensboro, and an NYE show in their hometown of Asheville at the Orange Peel.
And here they perform “Cluck Old Hen” (from the band’s youtube channel):
More info? http://www.slaytercreative.com