By Sheri McKee
Gradoux, one of the city’s hottest and busiest bands right now, recently released their first CD, Pronounced (gra-DOO), and perform regularly on Monday nights at Banks Street Bar, keeping the hopes of a Mid-City revival alive and well. Members Kevin O’ Day, “West Bank” Mike Doussan, and Scott Jackson comprise the bluesy funk driven rock-and-roll trio that’s driving the crowds wild with their style of NOLA infused music which any native can dance to.
“We have the classic sound of a power trio with an unmistakable New Orleans influence,” said drummer Kevin O’ Day. “The record is the true sound of the band, being that the entire record is first takes. It is raw and real.”
“The Gradoux CD is definitely raw,” said Mike Doussan. “Gradoux was only 3 months old when we started this record. I feel it captures the energy of our live performances. We got every track on the first take. The only overdubs were vocals and we added Corey Henry on trombone and CR Gruver on one track. Everything else is nothing but a power trio mixing the elements of New Orleans funk and the raw power that you would feel listening to Cream or Hendrix.”
“I think that what you hear at one of our shows is the sound of three guys coming together and having a conversation. It’s never the same twice and rarely the same once. We are willing to try new things, take songs into other directions and take risks because we know each other so well. Each member is a distinct individual with their own set of influences, but we each bring everything that we have to the table, and we play our hearts out,” said bassist Scott Jackson.
Gradoux could easily be considered another musical miracle from the outcome of Hurricane Katrina. For Scott Jackson and “West Bank” Mike Doussan, their trip to Houston quickly led them back home just weeks after Katrina, where they found Kevin and saw that people were starving for live music.
“Katrina forced me to turn my life in a whole new direction,” said Doussan. “My family went to Houston, signed a one-year lease to get the kids back in school, came back to NOLA, and the wife and I eventually divorced. My band, West Bank Mike & The Fisher Project, underwent massive changes with the band dispersed all over the country. The only remaining member, bassist Scott Jackson, came to live with me in Houston about five days after Katrina hit. We made a four-song demo of the rough tracks we had finished recording two days before the storm hit, and passed them out in every music club we came across. We booked an average of 20 nights a month using Houston drummer Wes Korner and Houston Keyboardest Phil Marquez.
“We started coming back to NOLA when the clubs started booking again. We would spend two weeks in Houston and two weeks in NOLA. We continued our bi-residential lifestyle until some family issues forced me to break the lease and come back to NOLA. We eventually hooked up with Kevin and formed Gradoux, which is where we are now. Good has come out of every decision that had to be made post Katrina. This is my home and the music we create is a part of New Orleans; I want to be here to continue to create and preserve the music of this great city.”
“Hurricane Katrina was hard on me because I lost just about everything I owned,” said O’ Day. “What was especially hard was that I lost all the equipment that I’ve been collecting for the last 20 years. I didn’t have steady work for about two months after the storm. On the positive side, I managed to get married to my beautiful wife four days after the storm, at my parents' house where we evacuated together. I also ended up doing a thank you concert tour of the Middle East and Africa, arranged by the state department, which was an incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“I got an opportunity to play with Stevie Wonder when he showed up at a gig I was playing with Walter ‘Wolfman’ Washington at dba, after his benefit concert the day before. Walter has brought me on a musical journey like no other bandleader that I have ever worked with. Walter approaches the music in a holistic way, where the notes and technique are in balance with the feeling, the soul, and the root of the music. He’s in many ways a home base for me musically.
“After Katrina, I was blessed to be a part of a huge fundraiser for the Red Cross that took place at Town Hall in New York City. I also took part in the Instruments A Comin’ benefit at Tipitina’s last year. I was written about in Rolling Stone Magazine and I think in general my profile just got a little higher since Katrina.
“I also started another band Post K – the Midnite Disturbers – with Galactic drummer Stanton Moore, after taking up residence at his house in Algiers, due to Katrina. While hanging out drinking coffee in my kitchen, I suggested the idea of taking apart a drum kit and having it playable by four hands instead of four limbs, and the next thing you know, Stanton is on the phone with DW working out the dimension and specifics, and in a couple of weeks we had the thing sounding pretty amazing.
“There’s been a phenomenal show of support and I feel now more than ever, that I really belong here. This is where my heart is and I don’t want to live anywhere else. Come hell or high water, I’ll still be here. I find it pretty amazing how twisted people’s ideas are of what happened and is happening. For the most part, because we are not in the media 24/7 anymore, I think most people believe that we have recovered, which we all know is far from the truth.”
“This is my home,” said Jackson. “There is no other city that I would rather live in, and I have been all over the world. I refuse to let something such as a hurricane change that. I draw inspiration from everything I see in the city around me, from the destruction in my neighborhood to the conversations that I overhear at my corner store. All of these little things that are so distinctly New Orleans find their way into my playing. The music fans Post Katrina have been nothing short of amazing, and it has really given me some validation for what we do. I can look at the people in the
crowds, see the expressions on their faces, and realize that I have done something very valuable with my day.”
“The attitude of true New Orleanians is what really inspires me,” said Doussan. “Playing acoustic by candlelight in the street, out in front of Banks Street Bar – having taken ten feet of water wasn’t stopping Maria from opening up.”
“It’s an interesting time to be a musician from New Orleans right now,” said Jackson. “The music scene seems to be very healthy. There has been a bit of a changing of the guard due to musicians relocating after the storm. Fans are coming out and spending money.”
“We aren’t doing bad, but we’d love more people spreading the word about the band and coming out to support the weekly Monday gigs at Banks Street Bar. We could be a little more comfortable. The music is our living, so throw some extra dough in the tip jars if you have it,” joked Doussan.
“All people need to do is buy our CDs, go to the shows, and have fun. Music can be cathartic, spiritual and healing. Really, when the fans support the music they help the whole community. I feel that New Orleans is about to experience a major renaissance and change for the better,” said O’Day. “I am blessed to be here and having been able to play with and meet so many of the older, great musicians of the real New Orleans jazz, rhythm and blues community. People like Richard Payne, John Vidacovich, Mike Pellara, Eric Traub, Walter ‘Wolfman’ Washington, Michael Ray and Kirk Joseph have always been incredibly willing to pass on musical knowledge, and that’s just a few that I can think of right now.”
“I admire the Meters as legendary NOLA musicians,” said Doussan. “They were a group of guys doing the same thing we are trying to do and they spread their music to the world, and continue to do so. Pure uncut energy and superb musicianship describes Gradoux. I don’t think there is a trio in the city that compares to the sound we produce. I think it’s a sound that hasn’t been heard in a long time.”
“I’ve always pushed musical boundaries. I remember one day sitting in the lounge of the music school at Loyola University and I was practicing, just sitting there on the couch and I happened to look up for some reason and I saw my reflection in the glass. It was in that moment that I knew I had achieved my goal of becoming a musician and that it would be my true career and calling in life. I kind of saw an unguarded snapshot of myself in that split second,” said O’Day.
Drummer Kevin O’ Day is currently working on a new CD with Walter and on his first solo CD. Besides their weekly Banks Street gig, Gradoux also plays as the backing band for James Andrews and the Crescent City All-Stars as well as for the One Hundred and One Runners Mardi Gras Indian funk band. The guys in Gradoux are looking forward to getting out on the road, writing and performing some new music, and making their second CD.
“I love taking the VW bus on the road,” said Doussan. “The bus itself promotes the band when we pull into different cities. I love the road and get most of my inspiration when driving at 4 o’clock in the morning on the way to the next gig. I like playing our music for a new audience. We have been received well everywhere we have played. I miss my kids on the road and sometimes it’s hard to find good food, but within the eight months we’ve been together, we’ve made great strides, opening up for Galactic, playing to a packed house for Rebirth’s opening at Tipitina’s, and played all over during Jazz Fest. I would like to see the gigs continue to get bigger and better and hopefully pack Tip’s on our own account soon. I’m already looking forward to what we produce for the next record.”
To find out more information about Gradoux and view their latest schedule,
visit www.gradoux.com.