New Basics Brass Band -- Good Times Are Likely

CDs can be like medicine bottles sometimes. Many bands get a "warning" sticker slapped on them (fear the side effects of offensive lyrics!) and a few others put their own usage directions on them (usually of the "play it loud!" variety). On Columbus, Ohio-based septet New Basics Brass Band's third album, they put the side-effects right in the title and, just to be safe, offer this dictate on the back cover: "This disc contains sousaphone-powered party music, carefully crafted to enliven any gathering and improve any disposition." Indeed, NBBB's spirited, kick-brass brand of N'awlins Funk is built to party and the group's main songwriter, Rob Maccabee, is without question Ohio's grooviest sousaphone player, blowing riffs as bouncy and buoyant as any bassist's. The band shows off its expanded roster on Good Times, wisely adding Soul/Funk organ and tasty guitar licks and rhythms (vocals are handled by a mix of players and seem like an afterthought, but are still wildly effective). You'd have to have a pitch-black heart to not get sucked into NBBB's infectiously joyous ruckus, laid out tight and skillfully with a Jazz band's flair for expression and precision. Whether reinterpreting others (James Brown, Allen Toussaint, Professor Longhair) or showcasing their originals, NBBB causes a mix of happy feet, cold sweats and genuine awe at how the band can be so progressive yet authentically traditional at the same time. There, those are the added side effects (phew, no anal leakage). Listen once daily and only call your doctor in the morning if his name is Dr. John. The New Basics Brass Band performs Friday at Rhino's in Eastgate with Freekbass. (Mike Breen) Grade: A