Johnny Sketch and The Dirty Notes

Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes is the best band that you never paid much attention to. This band has been around for years, played a number of the major festivals and had a small write-up in Rolling Stone. Success well deserved, and like many bands in the loosely defined jam band genre, success that didn't come overnight. One thing I like about jam bands (for lack of a better term), is that they seem to really earn their success, with hard work, heavy touring and Grade-A talent. But Johnny Sketch is far from a traditional jam band. For one thing, they incorporate an extensive horn section including baritone and tenor sax, trumpet and even flugelhorn. Throw in some funky bass, keys, lightning guitar, virtuoso drums and even splashes of cello and flute, and the result is a very different, eclectic style compared to the many guitar-centered acts in the genre.

This band has its roots in New Orleans, and I'm going to spare you the clichés about greasy funk-laden down-home grooves like grandma's spicy gumbo. "The Big Awesome" incorporates bass, brass and flute in a way that's reminiscent of The Spam Allstars, transitioning from rock and funk to an ambient, laidback horn segue that pulled at my soul like a DJ Shadow sample. This song, like many on the album, is a journey incorporating different styles and rhythms into one piece, taking you on a ride like an epic Led Zeppelin or Phish track. This band knows how to rock, too, breaking out the heavy guitar riffs on "Kaiser," once again weaving their way through rhythm changes, making the song hard-rocking and complex, similar to Umphrey's McGee.

Despite all the comparisons, this band is unique but with many of the good qualities of some other legendary, equally unique bands. This made listening to the album a pleasure and exactly what its title suggests.

JamBase | The Good Foot
Go See Live Music!

http://www.johnnysketch.com/

[Published on: 4/23/08] - Jambase by Alex Borsody

"That’s when we headed out to Frenchman Street just steps away from the French Quarter and saw another New Orleans institution, Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes . They took the stage at midnight, and they played until the dawn’s early light. Best live show I’ve seen in NOLA in 15 years.

On the plane ride home, I was full and happy. “Rock,” I said as we flew over the Louisiana/ Texas state line, “that was just what I needed.” - American Way Magazine

Johnny Sketch and The Dirty Notes are one of New Orleans best kept secrets - maybe. .....Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera (Noiselab) is their third album. But the bands Jazz Fest set was a revelation to me: jamband bonhomie and Louisiana stroll spiced with klezmer style violin and funeral-parade horns... Pain is more of that punch: what you you'd get if Phish had been born at Tipitina's and studied under George Clinton and Frank Zappa late night on the levee. - Rolling Stone Magazine -- David Fricke

Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes
Live at the Spleaf
(Full Frontal Records)

The "Spleaf" in question is, of course, Uptown mainstay the Maple Leaf Bar, but the joke fits the Dirty Notes perfectly; this jamband is mostly composed of collegiate references, equal parts funk, weed, sex, and righteous indignation against The Man. ("We're bombing Iraq, and they arrest me for using?" complains Sketch on the ripsnorter "Curb.") It's no coincidence that each member's name is some sort of joke along these lines: Dirty Johnny, Busta Gnutt, Harry Pothead. Get it?

Their sophomoric approach belies their content, however. Dig deeper into these eight very extended, mostly instrumental jams (average length: 8:12) and you'll find subtle elements of jazz, hip-hop, and even hard rock: "Gretchen" features some great brass work and the turntable wizardry of DJ Kinetic, while their version of Manu Dibango's "Big Blow" proves they know their Afrobeat-and their history-as well as anyone on the circuit. And that quote of AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" near the end of "Curb" is to perfect to be anything but a homage. It's hard to pick an MVP from this sextet; May 21st, 2004 was apparently a hot night for the Notes, with bassist Gnutt exploding all over the intro to the frenetic "H.B.I." and Johnny answering him with blasts of distorted fury before dissolving into a heavily reverbed psych-jazz breakdown with classical overtones. Noodling this is not. Johnny and company essentially function as a jazz-funk power trio with a horn section built in, and that makes the dynamics of this group quite exciting indeed; imagine Rush being tutored by the Meters. Or just go to the Spleaf and witness the twisted majesty of these guys in their full glory. And if you just happen to be spleafed out yourself, well, it probably couldn't hurt.

-Robert Fontenot



- Offbeat Magazine Sept. 2004

Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes
Live at the Spleaf
(Full Frontal)

In case you were engaged in a prolonged Rip Van Winkle moment, let me tell you this: the next great New Orleans “party till you drop with the funk that don’t stop guitars that are over the top with horns that hit the spot” band has arrived.

Johnny Sketch’s brand of high energy frenzied rock ‘n’ roll and wry, tongue-in-cheek lyrical content has been sending the college kids and the local ‘heads into a spinning butt-shaking frenzy from the bumpy boulevard of Oak Street to the quaint old town square of Gretna with occasional pit stops as the soundtrack for the parties of subversive krewes of decadence. The band’s live prowess is captured here with a fine recording of a May 2004 appearance at the Maple Leaf. The whole disc is laden with tight horn arrangements and some searing guitar solos, including “Saucy Jack” and “Big Blow (Africafunk).” If you are trying to locate the band’s signature anthem, look no farther than the ten- minute epic entitled “Bandicoot.”

Finally, those that suffer from fear of ballads need not worry; none will be found here.

Billy Thinnes - Where Yat Magazine

As befitting alumni of Loyola University's classical music program, the members of Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes donned tuxedos for a CD release party last year. They opened their performance with Bach's "Little Fugue," a grand, classical composition with multiple solos woven into a recurring theme.

"After that," recalled Dirty Notes violinist Harry Hardin, "we took off our pants and did the rest of the show in tuxedo tops and boxer shorts."

And so it goes with Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes, formally trained musicians who apply their considerable chops to an often irreverent program of kitchen sink eclecticism, equal parts New Orleans funk, rock and high-octane improvisatory instrumentals.
On the Dirty Notes' new, third CD, "Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera" (NoiseLab Records), the musicians' sense of humor is apparent on "Right Hand Thunder," a pompous heavy metal spoof a la Spinal Tap and Tenacious D, and "What's the Matter," a rock 'n' roll call to Orleans funk, rock and high-octane improvisatory instrumentals.

On the Dirty Notes' new, third CD, "Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera" (NoiseLab Records), the musicians' sense of humor is apparent on "Right Hand Thunder," a pompous heavy metal spoof a la Spinal Tap and Tenacious D, and "What's the Matter," a rock 'n' roll call to arms.

But the album opens with "Getting By," a mid-tempo exercise in pop songcraft devoid of solos and irony. The ballad "Mirando" is rendered with acoustic guitars and a string section. Much of the new album features vocals and/or string arrangements by Andre Bohren, the group's multitalented drummer.

"Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera," then, is something of a coming of age. For a CD release party tonight at Tipitina's -- the band also performs Saturday at the French Quarter Festival -- the Dirty Notes will employ a string section for the first time. And they plan to perform "Mirando," likely for the first and only time.

"I can't imagine us ever doing that as part of our regular show," Hardin said. "It needs the string quartet and an acoustic guitar. And you usually can't find an acoustic guitar anywhere near our stage."

Hardin, Bohren, guitarist/vocalist Marc Paradis and bassist David Pomerleau, all Loyola music students and denizens of the city's nightclubs, first joined forces in 2001 to enter a campus battle of the bands. To compensate for a repertoire of only three songs, they scoured thrift stores for costumes -- Bohren ended up as a firefighter strung with Christmas lights -- and enlisted girlfriends to hurl bras at them.

They won.

"They slammed everybody -- there was no one close," recalled Papa Grows Funk leader John "Papa" Gros, one of the judges. "You could tell they were good musicians, and that they were going to be great musicians over time. But they had the whole rock 'n' roll irreverent thing going on. That's just magic, and those guys had it."

Their prize? A gig at the Howlin' Wolf the following weekend. An intense week of rehearsals convinced them that gimmicks would still be necessary. So Hardin, a former West Bank tae kwon do instructor, stocked up on wooden boards that he cracked with his head.

"We've got a recording of the gig," he said. "It's pretty horrible. You can hear the boards breaking onstage. Marc busted out the Michael Jackson dance from 'Bad.' Anything to pass the time and keep people from leaving.

"We still keep that in mind, trying to make it a show. But now we've got a little more music to back it up."

With trumpeter Nick Volz now on board, they built a following, progressing from weeknights at the Parkway Tavern and the Maple Leaf to opening for the Radiators at Tipitina's.

Their broad repertoire reflects their collective love for Ween, the bizarro pop duo whose eclectic CDs are a Dirty Notes tour van favorite, as well as their varied individual interests.

As the son of hard-traveling folk and blues guitarist Spencer Bohren, Andre Bohren grew up around roots music, but also pounded drums in a punk band and is a fluent classical pianist. Paradis rocked Guns 'n Roses anthems in his old cover band, but Hardin now renders the signature Slash guitar solo in "Sweet Child O' Mine" with a violin. They rediscovered Afro-pop saxophonist Manu Dibango's "Big Blow," which appeared on the band's 2004 concert album "Live at the Spleaf."

The addition of saxophonist Tommy Occhiuto, the only Dirty Note to study jazz at Loyola instead of classical, added another element to their sound.

"Tommy brought jazz theory to the table," Hardin said. "He helped get us away from the blues scale, which is a challenge for anybody learning how to improvise. Especially with classical players -- scales are ingrained in our heads.

"We named the band the Dirty Notes because we were always playing wrong notes, and it sounded really bad. Tommy said, 'There's nothing wrong with that. It's your blue note.' "

They recorded their 2003 debut, "Bandicoot," in 10 days, and it shows. By contrast, they worked for over a year on "Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera," taking full advantage of the possibilities afforded by co-producer Jimmy Augustin's studio. They spiffed up songs with strings,

"We've got a recording of the gig," he said. "It's pretty horrible. You can hear the boards breaking onstage. Marc busted out the Michael Jackson dance from 'Bad.' Anything to pass the time and keep people from leaving.

"We still keep that in mind, trying to make it a show. But now we've got a little more music to back it up."

With trumpeter Nick Volz now on board, they built a following, progressing from weeknights at the Parkway Tavern and the Maple Leaf to opening for the Radiators at Tipitina's.

Their broad repertoire reflects their collective love for Ween, the bizarro pop duo whose eclectic CDs are a Dirty Notes tour van favorite, as well as their varied individual interests.

As the son of hard-traveling folk and blues guitarist Spencer Bohren, Andre Bohren grew up around roots music, but also pounded drums in a punk band and is a fluent classical pianist. Paradis rocked Guns 'n Roses anthems in his old cover band, but Hardin now renders the signature Slash guitar solo in "Sweet Child O' Mine" with a violin. They rediscovered Afro-pop saxophonist Manu Dibango's "Big Blow," which appeared on the band's 2004 concert album "Live at the Spleaf."

The addition of saxophonist Tommy Occhiuto, the only Dirty Note to study jazz at Loyola instead of classical, added another element to their sound.

"Tommy brought jazz theory to the table," Hardin said. "He helped get us away from the blues scale, which is a challenge for anybody learning how to improvise. Especially with classical players -- scales are ingrained in our heads.

They recorded their 2003 debut, "Bandicoot," in 10 days, and it shows. By contrast, they worked for over a year on "Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera," taking full advantage of the possibilities afforded by co-producer Jimmy Augustin's studio. They spiffed up songs with strings, complex arrangements and such guests as the senior Bohren on lap steel and Latin percussionist Michael Skinkus.

"But at the same time, we didn't want people to think we were trying to be too serious," Hardin said. "There's a lot of satire." Like "Right Hand Thunder," with epic metal lyrics about fiery demons and prophecy foretold. "It sounds so hard-core and serious," Hardin said, "but we're hoping that everybody gets the joke." Costumes are no longer mandatory onstage, except during Carnival and Halloween. Tonight at Tipitina's, Hardin says, "we'll probably be dressing fairly nice.

"But pants might come off -- you never know."

_________________________

JOHNNY SKETCH & THE DIRTY NOTES

What: CD release party, with guest Glasgow

When: Tonight at 10:30

Where: Tipitina's, 501 Napoleon Ave., (504) 895-8477

Tickets: $8 at the door - The Times Picayune

Pain, Pleasure, Fear, and Opera
Noiselab Records

Pain, Pleasure, Fear, and Opera, the latest recording from local band Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes, is a conceptual leap forward. After the good-natured hijinks of their first record and the power of their last live record, this new record seems meticulously put together, but still has the gonzo spontaneity that these six musicians are know for. The songs here have harmonies that reach toward Beach Boys heights and tight playing, but at the same time at any given moment they stop suddenly and change tempos or dynamics and barrel forward at the speed of light. The musicality of the band and this record, which includes horns, strings, and miscellaneous percussion including tympani, allows Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes to take these songs any way that they want. In that way, the record has moments that recall Frank Zappa’s best performances.

Although this CD comes across as a more serious effort, there are still funny moments all over the record, whether it’s the breakdown in “Everybody's Got Trouble” where the band yells, “Remember that the Dirty Notes are on your side!” or the faux Dragnet spy vibe of “So Dirty.” And you can almost see the smiles on the faces of the band during the mariachi horn exchanges in “Sherm,” especially during the animal calls and circus music quotes. Overall, Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes’ Pain, Pleasure, Fear, and Opera has a little bit of all four concepts and shows that this funk-rock band is moving in a worthwhile direction.

- David Kunian--Offbeat Magazine, N.O., LA

Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes record an 'Awesome' allegory for perseverance in an ode to Bigfoot

Friday, January 18, 2008
By Keith Spera

During a break in a Monday afternoon rehearsal, Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes debate the Sasquatch effect.

The possibly mythological beast appears on the cover of the local quintet's new, fourth CD, "The Big Awesome," and is the subject of its final track, "Glory of God (Song of the Sasquatch, Act I)." Vocalist, guitarist and primary lyricist Marc Paradis lives part-time in northern California, the heart of Bigfoot country, and is particularly obsessed.

Instruments at rest, he and his bandmates embark on an extended Bigfoot discourse for the benefit of visitors.

"The more you dig, the more interesting it gets," Paradis says. "The Loch Ness Monster, there's so little evidence. With Bigfoot, there's a significant amount of evidence. Teddy Roosevelt claimed to have seen a Bigfoot."

Everyone contemplates this point in silence. Then bassist Dave Pomerleau pipes up: "We also play music."

More than ever, music is the focus of Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes. After six years, four albums, hundreds of shows and many tens of thousands of miles on the road, they have honed their sound and identity. "The Big Awesome," not surprisingly, is the band's most accessible collection to date.

They'll showcase much of the album, along with old favorites and surprises, during a CD release party tonight at Tipitina's, part of the club's 30th anniversary celebration. The Motet and DJ Soul Sister open the show.

An aggregation of Loyola University classical music students formed Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes for a 2001 campus talent contest. An unexpected victory led to a headlining gig at the Howlin' Wolf and a scramble to pad a limited repertoire with enough antics and distractions to constitute a full show. Costumes, visual gags and alternate, "sketchy" identities all came into play.

Six years later, they've toured all corners of the country and manage to get by as full-time musicians. They are the latest in a long line of New Orleans bands that defy easy categorization beyond a synthesis of styles -- rock, funk, a Latin tinge courtesy of a horn section recruited from Loyola's jazz studies department -- and sufficient chops to chew up a stage.

Between tours, the band -- Paradis, Pomerleau, drummer Andre Bohren, trumpeter Omar Ramirez and saxophonist Andre Mouton -- rehearses at the Frenchy Acoustioptic Gallery, a small, cluttered space on Oak Street across from the Maple Leaf.

Frenchy is a familiar sight at concerts and sporting events, furiously painting as the action unfolds. His studio, on Oak Street's most bustling block, is more inspiring than a sterile rehearsal space, Paradis says. "People always stick their heads in. We rehearse at night and we'll have 50 or 60 people (from the Maple Leaf) listening to us."

The Maple Leaf has hosted a live Dirty Notes recording and many a notorious gig. A rowdy set last weekend stretched from 10:45 p.m. until 3:15 a.m., with only one break. Bohren concluded the show in his underwear. He can, and will, discuss the pros and cons of fishnet vs. spandex as stage attire.

But he and his bandmates have come to realize that how they present themselves on CD is at least as important as how they present themselves onstage.

Their 2003 debut "Bandicoot," like early shows, favored extended jams. On 2005's "Pain, Pleasure, Fear and Opera," they painstakingly built arrangements one instrument at a time, ranging from classical interludes to a Tenacious D-style hard-rock spoof.

But that meticulously crafted album did not paint a full picture.

"You had to have already been to one of our shows to appreciate it," Paradis says. "This new album is a natural progression. We wanted elements of all the things we're known for in everything. It's the meeting of all those concepts in one record."

"The Big Awesome" is the Dirty Notes' first CD since the paternity-related departure of violinist Harry Hardin (saxophonist Tommy Occhiuto left after the album was finished); Paradis has since added cello to his arsenal to help fill the void.

The band recorded "The Big Awesome" in a cabin in the Covington woods, playing live in the same room. Vocals and songwriting received special attention. "The Big Awesome" is the band's Hurricane Katrina album, though not overtly.

"A lot of records came out that were like 'the dark waters' and 'the rising tide,' " Paradis says. " 'The Big Awesome' is the opposite of that, a broad, general, positive sentiment. The attitude we came away with was, let's not make a sad record or a record that is too literal. Let's do something positive about perseverance and moving on."

Nowhere is that sentiment more apparent than in "Glory of God," the stomping closing track and first installment of Paradis' planned Bigfoot trilogy.

"The lyrics are about the Bigfoot pushing on and persevering," Paradis says. "He'll survive no matter what. He's confident that he can make it in this world."

The cover art depicts Sasquatch striding off into a glorious sunset -- a path Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes hope to follow.

"We haven't broken on the national scene," Paradis says. "Not everybody knows who we are. But regardless, we have faith in what we do, and believe we're capable of great things. We're going to push on and survive.

"Just like the Sasquatch."
- Keith Spera, Times Picayune, New Orleans, LA

s there such a thing as cerebral rock that doesn't suck? Johnny Sketch and Co. may be proving so with its immodestly titled fourth album The Big Awesome, which flexes the band's conservatory chops on meaty rock and funk in a way that's smart but not snobby. To wit: long tracks with no extra notes, tight horns that ooze slippery funk, popping second-line beats and jazz-styled groove that never wanders into jamband self-indulgence. The combination of jazz skills and party-time attitude brings to mind Zappa, if he'd had a New Orleans soul sensibility and an inclination to dance. The horns on the relaxed 'Find My Freedom" recall Allen Toussaint's early arrangements " relentlessly groovy.

- Alison Fensterstock, Gambit Magazine

JOHNNY SKETCH

I hope you don't mind an honest critique of a CD review from last month. I couldn't be more disappointed in one of your writers for trashing Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes' new record. In a time when 99.9 percent of new records in New Orleans are about "that thing" from 2005, an upcoming, hard-working band chose to record a concept album about a lot of the positive aspects of our beloved city and its variety.

You can hear the funk of the Meters, the beat of the second lines, the joy of the brass bands, the energy of the local indie rock bands, the arrangements of classical music, and touches of klezmer and Latin sprinkled throughout the album. Blended together, it is very much a Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes album.

The band is moving forward, not dredging up painful memories of late 2005. This album represents many things great about this city. I hear it as an invitation to the world to come experience the melting pot of New Orleans. Come experience the culture, the music, the food, and the variety that is inherently New Orleans.

So what if this band is all over the map when they record? The entire city is all over the map! Asking them to represent themselves differently on CD is like asking New Orleans to choose either red beans or crawfish. Or the Meters or the Marsalis Family? Or Harry Connick, Jr., Dr. John, or Fess? It's all of those things that make our city special, and it's the variety that makes Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes. That variety keeps me entertained and listening to their CDs, going to their shows, and waiting eagerly for their next creative work. And I'm proud as hell to have them represent the city of New Orleans when they're out on the road.

—Greg Fenario, New Orleans, LA - Offbeat Magazine