Building a Battle Ship by Cody Daigle
Black Bayou Construkt
CD Release Party
Blue Moon Saloon
8 p.m. April 10
More info: 1-877-766-BLUE.Their sound is so expansive, you almost feel as though you could lose yourself inside it.There
are worse fates to be sure, but Black Bayou Construkt, a local act that
pulls together an eclectic lineup of some local music heavyweights,
makes it feel like a blessing, delivering rock tunes that blend a host
of traditions and sounds seamlessly. A touch of classic rock resides
beside this strain of traditional roots music, which mixes perfectly
with this flavor of down-home country.
But what’s striking is
the expansiveness of the band’s music. A song may start simply — maybe
just a guitar and a vocal line — but before long, it cracks wide open,
spreading out into musical terrain you might not expect, delivering
more a soundscape than just a song.
It’s the kind of thing that happens when you bring top-notch musicians together.
Lucky
for local audiences, Black Bayou Construkt is bringing this
expansiveness to the Blue Moon Saloon this weekend for the release
party of its new CD, Kingdoms of Folly. The band will be joined by
Santeria for the one-night event April 10.
One-on-one with Dege Legg
Dege Legg, Black Bayou Construkt’s lead singer and songwriter,
talked to The Times about how the band came together, what makes the
band tick and what to expect from its show.
Legg on ... origins.
In 2004, Santeria had just gone on indefinite hiatus as a result of
burnout — 10 years together as a band — and Krishna’s [the band’s
drummer] near- fatal car accident. We all went our separate ways for a
while. Just getting some space. And time away.
While all the other
guys took breaks from the music world, I had another record written and
ready to go, and wished to continue playing music all the time. I lived
in seedy motels, a trailer park, Los Angeles, just getting the vibe and
writing some cool songs … less “loud rock” and more subtle and layered
and textured. Like singer/songwriter stuff without the cheese and sappy
jive.
Legg on ... The L.A. thing.
I lived in L.A. working with connected management, studio and band,
but it never jelled for me chemistry-wise. L.A. is about projecting a
marketable version of yourself … in broad strokes. I was into
subverting rock-type and playing down that stuff along with attempting
to keep it from getting too myopic. Whatever. I ditched L.A. after four
months. They thought I was crazy. Bailing on a good opportunity. Maybe
I was. But I was always follow-my-gut. Rather than stay and become
famous for something I’m not, I chose to come home and do things my way
and risk total obscurity in the rock oblivion that is the Deep South.
But I made the right decision.
Legg on ... coming together.
Black Bayou Band just fell together like magic. Like effortless
magic. The best players in town popped up and fell into place. Guys who
may not have dug the insanity of Santeria but who respected the
songwriting behind all the noise. That’s what I’m best at — not playing
guitar, not singing, not prancing around — just writing songs. Guys
like Hawley Joe Gary of Spank the Monkey (drummer), Michael Juan Nunez,
Chad Viatar (Roddie Romero, Arbor Vitae), Chad Willis (Riverbabys, Lil’
Buck), Sean Keating (Deadboy and the Elephantmen), and Esther
Tyree-Mertz … they all just showed up slowly, wanting to do something
cool and original, but not necessarily Cajun, rock, popular, or
whatever.
Legg on ... Black Bayou Construkt.
It’s a definitely an “all-star” kind of band … except we don’t get
together to book big-money gigs and make money — with this band, we can
get together to make the coolest unheard sounds and songs on earth. It
really is about the creative spirit … of coming together to make
something bigger than ourselves … that is unique. Everyone takes time
out from their regular bands and sneaks out to rip these Black Bayou
gigs … that don’t make anyone much money. And all of these guys have
family and bills to pay. But they still have the fire to create and do
it the same way we all started out … the initial creative rush.
Legg on ... the music.
The music is amazing. They kill it every night. It’s like this
southern Pink Floydian orchestra … with piano and violin. Double
guitars. Slide guitar. And a monster rock drummer … but no overdriven
distortion. All the guitars are fairly clean sounding. The band as a
whole crests and swells and creates the dynamics.
That’s the
true soul of the band. This kind of sacrifice. Love of music. Granted,
music is business, and we’ve all worked the grind touring — but every
member has kept the initial innocence of just playing alive in their
hearts. It’s really cool.