Get Out | Music
by Alyssa Smith
Concerts Check out this month’s awesome shows by Dawn Keable
November 12 You’ve let go of your Swatch watch, parachute pants and jelly shoes. But synthpop? Never. English duo La Roux rewinds to where their inspirations, like Depeche Mode, left off. Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel, 79 Washington Street. 621-6127, arttixri.com.
Just Dance Double Decker brings the sounds of West Africa to Providence For the most part, Providence has a solid music scene. Strolling downtown any given night, you can pop into Tazza for an open-mic, check out local and national acts at Lupo’s, or go to AS220 to see a variety of alternative artists. However, our good city seems to be missing something: dance music. Sure, you can get your fix at nightclubs or maybe find yourself bobbing your head for a livelier rock band. We have some great local DJs, and on a Friday or Saturday night, it’s easy to find a live band, but there seems to be a dearth of sweaty, shake what your momma gave ya and leave your troubles on the dance floor dance music in Providence. And finding a live band that plays African-inflected pop and gets you on your feet? Not likely. Fear not, dear friends, hope is not lost. Enter: The Double Decker Dance Band. Led by Liberian-born songwriter, singer, guitarist and keyboard player Joseph Paye, this infectious, Afro-pop and reggae sound is something local party people have been aching for. Started in 2008 by Paye and drummer Matt McLaren, Double Decker has grown to a 76
six-piece band of artists hoping to spread the dance bug to the area. Paye says Matt’s really the founder, while his role has been as teacher. “Matt got all the guys together so I could show them how to play the African music,” he recalls, adding, “It’s great for dancing.” Double Decker guitarist Chris Monti says he’s hoping the band can pioneer and promote a better dance music scene in Providence. Learning the unique West African melodies and dance lines from impresario Paye, Monti’s gotten a crash course in the West African sound. “Like any new form of music, it was unfamiliar,” he explains. “But I immersed myself in the music. It’s beautiful key stuff with a repetitive rhythm. It almost has a trance-like quality. Joe says he’s our teacher, and he really is.” Combining a healthy dose of improvisation with the defined Liberian style, the band’s sound strikes a nice balance between the immediacy of being fun and danceable while also musically complex and rhythmically interesting, something that reveals itself upon closer listening. “Joe does a lot of vocal and guitar improvisation,” Monti adds.
Providence Monthly | November 2010
Like the sound, most of the lyrics seem light, but also pay homage to African roots, as in “Ju ju Music,” a song about the style of music in Nigeria that evolved from Yoruba folklore, and “African Children,” to name a couple. After opening for big name artists like Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars and Steady Bongo in Boston and Philadephia, the band has established they can groove with the finest while getting audiences on their feet. Monti confirms that Double Decker is itching to give Providence a new sound. “I’d like there to be a bigger dance scene in Providence. The only way to do that is with shows and proper promotion,” he says. These boys are worth checking out, if not for the dancing, than for the fact that it will broaden your musical horizon. The next show for the Double Decker Dance Band is “Johnny Tabs’ Afrofunk Dance Party, Part 2” at the 201 on November 20, along with Boston’s Full Tang. So, bring your dancin’ shoes, work on your booty shaking and be prepared to show your moves on the dance floor. facebook.com/doubledeckerband
November 13 No offense, Tiny Tim, but sometimes you need the spirit of the season to arrive in full out sparkle like the Divas of Drag Holiday Revue, with the Providence Gay Men’s Chorus. Stadium Theatre, 28 Monument Square, Woonsocket. 762-4545, stadiumtheatre.com.
November 13 They’ll respond to Sweet Honey In The Rock, but you can call these six ladies carrying on an a cappella African-American tradition of blues, gospel and jazz, just plain fierce. Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Avenue of the Arts. 421-2787, vmari.org.
November 21 Two things have protected Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson from a flute-playing beatdown for over 40 years: exposed biceps and mustache. Observe both during his solo tour. Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Avenue of the Arts. 421-2787, vmari.org.
November 21 All you need to know is that Straight No Chaser, a ten-member, all male a cappella group featured on Oprah, reworks Toto’s “Africa” into something you actually want to sing along with. Park Theatre, 848 Park Avenue, Cranston. 467-7275, parktheatreri.com.
Photography: Jori Ketten
Double Decker Dance Band