''So It Is'' is a

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by the

Preservation Hall Jazz Band The Preservation Hall Jazz Band is a New Orleans jazz band founded in New Orleans by tuba player Allan Jaffe in the early 1960s. The band derives its name from Preservation Hall in the French Quarter. In 2005, the Hall's doors were closed for a ...

of New Orleans,

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. It was released on April 21, 2017 on

Legacy Recordings Legacy Recordings is an American record label that is a division of Sony Music. Formed in 1990 after Sony's acquisition of CBS Records, Legacy originally handled the archives of Sony Music-owned labels Columbia Records and Epic Records. In 2 ...

, produced by

TV On the Radio TV on the Radio (TVOTR) is an American rock music, rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2001. The band consists of Tunde Adebimpe (vocals, loops), Dave Sitek (guitars, keyboards, loops), Kyp Malone (vocals, guitars, bass, loops), and ...

Dave Sitek David Andrew Sitek (born September 6, 1972) is an American musician and record producer, known for his work with his band TV on the Radio. He has also worked with bands such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Liars, Foals, Celebration, Little Dragon, Wavves ...

and

Ben Jaffe Benjamin Jaffe (born January 26, 1971) is the creative director of Preservation Hall and plays tuba and double bass with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Early life and education He is the son of Preservation Hall's former managers, Allan Jaffe ...

, and recorded at Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, TX. Dave had the band record in the round so they could feed off of each other's energy. In addition to the traditional sounds and musical stylings of

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

jazz, the album has a strong Afro-Cuban influence as well. This is in large part due to the band's 2015 trip to

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

; in fact, the song Santiago is titled after the Cuban city of the same name.

Semisonic Semisonic is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Minneapolis in 1995, consisting of Dan Wilson (musician), Dan Wilson (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), John Munson (bass, keyboards, backing vocals, guitar), and Jacob Slichter (drums, pe ...

’s Dan Wilson co-wrote the track ''One Hundred Fires''.

Track listing

The record contains 7 songs, all of which are original compositions by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. This continues the trend of their previous album ''That's It,'' which was the first album of all original material in the band's 50 year history. # So It Is # Santiago #Innocence #La Malanga #Convergence #One Hundred Fires #Mad

Band members

* Ben Jaffe – tuba, double bass * Branden Lewis – trumpet * Ronell Johnson – trombone * Charlie Gabriel – clarinet, tenor saxophone * Clint Maegden – tenor saxophone * Kyle Roussell – piano * Walter Harris – drums

Critical reception

AllMusic.com gave the album four out of five stars. "A marriage of the infectious street parade rhythms endemic of New Orleans bands and the vibrant dance pulse at the heart of much Cuban music" - ''LA Times'' "If 2013's 'That's It!' marked a creative step forward for the Preservation Hall Jazz Band—their first recording in 50 years to feature all original compositions—then the new So It Is represents a flying leap" – ''Jazz Times'' "The album grooves nonstop" – ''Entertainment Weekly'' "Raw, no-holds-barred jazz and blues that they helped personally create a renaissance for, while surreptitiously luring their listeners into what often explodes into a full-on Afro-Latin dance party" – ''AllMusic'' "Ferociously powerful collection of — there's no better phrase — fucking jams" – ''Stereogum'' "Preservation Hall Jazz Band channel the verve of traditional Cuban music" – ''Rolling Stone''

Appearances

On April 27, 2017, the band performed with Jon Batiste & Stay Human on ''

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert ''The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night news satire, news and liberal political satire talk show hosted by Stephen Colbert, which premiered on September 8, 2015. Produced by Stephen Colbert, Spartin ...

''. For the song "Santiago" surprise guest

Dave Grohl David Eric Grohl (; born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He founded the rock band Foo Fighters, of which he is the lead singer, guitarist, principal songwriter, and only consistent member. From 1990 to 1994, he was the drummer of th ...

played drums. Grohl collaborated with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band during the

Foo Fighter The term ''foo fighters'' was used by Allied aircraft pilots during World War II to describe various unidentified flying objects (UFO) or mysterious aerial phenomena seen in the skies over both the European and Pacific theaters of operations. ...

's ''

Sonic Highways ''Sonic Highways'' is the eighth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on November 10, 2014, through Roswell and RCA Records. Similar to their previous album, '' Wasting Light'' (2011), it was produced by the band with Butc ...

'' HBO miniseries and album.

Charts

References

External links

* {{Authority control Jazz albums by American artists 2017 albums Albums recorded at Sonic Ranch