by Damian Garde
Daily Lobo
Modern jazz is often associated with stuffy clubs frequented by bespectacled men in cardigans.
However, for Le Chat Lunatique, this definition could hardly be more misguided. The Albuquerque quartet specializes in what they call "filthy, mangy jazz," a rollicking racket that would sound right at home in the grimiest of 1920s speakeasies.
Drawing inspiration from France's legendary Hot Club, the band sounds a bit like Duke Ellington with an absinthe problem, or perhaps the soundtrack to Idlewild if the film were a documentary. Though its influences betray an air of stiff artiness, Le Chat Lunatique serves as a reminder that - despite all the pretensions of modern musicians - jazz began as primal dance music.
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The band's dedication to the sounds of the era does not stop at sound. All four members honor the sartorial side of swing, taking the stage in dapper suits and the occasional fedora. Presentation plays a large role in Le Chat Lunatique, down to bassist Jared Putnam's Salvador Dal° mustache.
Formed in the fall of 2005, the band is comprised of Muni Kulasinghe on violin, John Sandlin on guitar, Putnam on stand-up bass and Fernando Garavito on drums. While a gypsy-jazz band surely defies the norm of the local band scene, Putnam said the band has no trouble finding an audience.
"It's been surprisingly smooth," he said. "People seem to get what we're doing."
The band's fanbase spans beyond the average jazz aficionado, including swing kids, middle-aged business types, the occasional flock of grandparents and - as Putnam jokingly pointed out - hot college girls.
"Cri Du Chat," a song named presumably after a disease, is a perfect distillation of the Lunatique sound. The virtuoso style guitar and fiddle are not unlike those displayed by jazz legends Django Reinhardt and StÇphane Grapelli. However, the thumping rhythm section avoids the tidiness of most jazz and instead takes on a guttural wallop Tom Waits might appreciate.
The band plays a cover of Tex Williams' "Smoke, Smoke, Smoke (That Cigarette)," but instead of the country twang of the original, Le Chat Lunatique supplements a swing beat and walking bass - transforming an old country standard into a raucous affair.
Le Chat Lunatique's average set is comprised of half cover songs and half originals, Putnam said. Its popularity on stage led the band to release Puss in Bootleg, an album of live recordings. After its continued successes, the band is in the process of completing an album composed entirely of original songs. Le Chat Lunatique is also in the process of shooting its first music video.
Le Chat Lunatique
Harlow's on the Hill
Thursday
10 p.m.
$4
