Band of the Week, 3/2

Lately, I've been on a big kick of historically black music, and I've discovered a great band called The Ink Spots that I wanted to share with you. Formed in the late '30's in Indianapolis, The Ink Spots played a style of music that would be a precursor the R&B and Doo-Wop. Members of the quartet also played guitar and bass, but the focus is undoubtedly on the vocals. Here's a sampling of their music.






I'm particularly fond of "If I Didn't Care", as it was the first song of theirs that I ever heard. This song, as well as many of their others, contains spoken interludes in the middle of the songs, which sound a bit odd at first, but after a few seconds seem to make sense. I also really enjoyed their version of the Gershwin classic "Nice Work if You Can Get It" as well as "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire." The latter has one of the spoken interludes, much like "If I Didn't Care."

Lastly, here's a rare televised appearance of the group, from what year I'm not sure. Hope you enjoy!

Band of the Week, 2/18

I know it's been a while since I've posted, and for that I apologize. Hopefully Quintus will make up for that.

My band of the week is also one of my all-time favorites, Quintus. Lead by frontman Reuben Chess, Quintus is a rock-blues-pop band from NYC.



Quintus "What Do You Know?" Brooklyn Bowl from Possum Den Productions on Vimeo.




This is a video from one of their shows last April at the Brooklyn Bowl. Their first EP was released in 2006, entitled "The Shape We're In." Recorded by Levon Helm at his studio in Woodstock, the album featured 6 tracks, most notably "Orienta", a fan favorite. My personal favorite on the album, however, is "Night Owl."




Hope you enjoy!