courtesy of Orange Grove Publicity
About a month ago the New Orleans combo Sabertooth Swing released its second album, Songs of Future Past. The group is a combo led by trumpeter and vocalist Dan Ruch, who shares the front line with Alex Canales on reeds (saxophone and clarinet) and Chris Butcher on trombone. Rhythm is provided by Spike Perkins on bass and Robert Montgomery on drums, along with guitarist Roman Beauxis, who shares production duties with Ruch. Possibly due to COVID conditions, Amazon.com seems to be limiting itself to a Web page for digital download distribution. Bandcamp, on the other hand, has a Web page for both the physical CD and digital streaming and download, as well as a far more informative account of both the musicians and the tracks than Amazon managed to muster.
The group describes its repertoire as “a rich musical tradition of swing jazz with old roots and exciting new ramifications.” Those in the Bay Area might detect some “family resemblance” to the old-time style of Lee Presson and the Nails, but the Sabertooth swingers are less inclined to go for Presson’s comic approach to both horror movies and Spike Jones. On the other hand, the new album also has a track for Tom Waits’ “Chocolate Jesus,” delivered with just the right style of mock-reverence.
The album also includes “guest artist” appearances for two of the more familiar tracks. Saxophonist Seth Ballin joins the front line on the opening track of the album, “Frankie and Johnny;” and pianist Ryan Hanseler joins the sextet for Irving Berlin’s “How Deep is the Ocean.” (Berlin is the only composer to be honored with two tracks on the album, the other being “Blue Skies.”) Taken as a whole, the eclecticism of the group’s broad repertoire is consistently engaging, while its New Orleans roots provide the comfort of a less stressful past without ever succumbing to mawkish nostalgia.
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