For 34 years, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, affectionately referred to as “Jazz Fest,” has been bringing Louisiana music lovers the biggest names in music. The event spans two weekends, staging performances of countless genres, including Afro-Caribbean and Zydeco.
Along with a formidable collection of traditional acts, Jazz Fest makes sure to include highly popular modern acts. One of the festival’s main shows will be by North Carolina folk rock five-piece The Avett Brothers.
This year’s Jazz Fest begins April 25, and The Avett Brothers’ bassist Bob Crawford had much to say about the band’s newer material as well as the upcoming festival.
The Daily Reveille: The latest album seemed to garner a lot of reaction from your fans because of its significant change in sound from your other albums. What do you think is one true reason for such a shift that was so noticeable?
Bob Crawford: Okay, so we did “The Carpenter” and then we released “Magpie and the Dandelion,” and they were both recorded at the same time. I think that if there was a difference in sound, it was due to the fact that everything that was recorded came out of the same “stew,” so to speak. So we didn’t really offer a whole new creative element. I do think the way [Magpie] came out is a completely different album from “The Carpenter” did. I think that was because of those other songs that kind of remained. … There was a heavier outlook to it, so I think that it was heavy in a somber way.
TDR: What about the change in sound from “The Carpenter” and “Magpie and the Dandelion,” as a different sound from an album like “I and Love and You?” From the more folksy sound of “I and Love and You” to heavier stuff in these last two albums?
BC: Well, “I and Love and You” was kind of our first major label record, if that makes any sense. It was our first time working with Rick Rubin. I think the whole “The Carpenter” process was a lot smoother for us and a lot more familiar to us at that point. So I can remember that time period being a very comfortable recording session for “The Carpenter” and what became “Magpie.” It was very relaxed and we would just show up for work every day, and we worked a long day, but there was never any anticipation, and the “newness” that was “I and Love and You.” It was a whole new world for us. When we made “The Carpenter,” we were kind of used to it by then.
TDR: You’ll be playing one of the larger stages at the festival. Do you think that extra space will help better accommodate your devoted fans, or will it help bring in interested ones who don’t know anything about you yet?
BC: Hopefully, get newer ones, right?
TDR: Do you plan on playing any new material while at Jazz Fest?
BC: It’s always a possibility.
TDR: Your fanbase has a large age range with a younger majority. At Jazz Fest, how do you think older fans who are used to French-influenced Louisiana music will respond to your folk style?
BC: They’ll be sorely disappointed. I hope that there’s a root element that we share with a lot of traditional music. It’s hard to be the age we are and think that the bulk of our fanbase is young. It’s great that we do have such a young following, but I personally think our demographic goes a lot older. We definitely have a broad spectrum of supporters. When we first started playing, we would play and we would have someone who was, at that point in time, our age, in their 20s or early 30s. We would come back to that town and then they would bring their parents, or they would bring their kids and their parents. Often we would have generations at a show. I hope for a festival crowd and I do imagine that Jazz Fest is multigenerational I hope that we can appeal to all age groups.
TDR: What would you say is your favorite part of the festival since you’ve been there a few times before?
BC: The food and obviously the playing. Being in that environment. It’s just a wonderful environment. There’s a lot of great music and it’s an honor to be there. The food there is amazing and it’s kind of an all-around great event.
The Avett Brothers will be performing April 25 on the Samsung Galaxy Stage from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.