CR REVIEW: Buckwheat Zydeco lays down burdens with Creole kick

By Diana Nollen

Sick of scooping out your driveway and sidewalks? Just blast a little Buckwheat Zydeco out the front door and watch the snow melt.

Lafayette, La., native Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural Jr. and his band turn even the most dire of circumstances into a party on their recent Grammy-winning effort, “Lay Your Burden Down.”

This is zydeco at its kickin' best, a spicy jambalaya of Creole dance music, jazz, blues and Caribbean beats, leaning heavily on accordion, organ, rubboard (wearable washboards), horns and percussion.

A mix of original songs and covers, every cut tells a compelling story of love and loss on the most personal, visceral level. And yet you just want to dance.

The first song, “When the Levee Breaks,” is ripped from the Mississippi River flood of 1927, but sounds like it could have been based on the Katrina devastation in the Gulf or the floods of 2008 in Eastern Iowa. Blazing guitar and organ envelop the lyrics until accordion ushers in the sound of a Louisiana funeral celebration winding through the streets. Even from destruction comes a spirit that will not die.

Gospel harmonies lend a special flair to several cuts, include “Don't Leave Me,” with blistering trombone from Trombone Shorty; “Time Goes By,” featuring some funky bari sax; and Captain Beefheart's “Too Much Time.”

Fun and funk also go hand in hand through the reggae-tinged “Let Your Yeah be Yeah” and Bruce Springsteen's “Back in Your Arms,” which begins with a sweeping, mournful organ before taking on a Caribbean vibe and nice, tight vocal harmonies.

The title track is infused with the most weary of beats for a swamp gospel sound, while “Finding My Way Back Home” adds some blues to the mix.

And even though the band will be playing CSPS in Cedar Rapids on Ash Wednesday, let's hope they break out the beads for the lively Mardi Gras romp, “Throw Me Something, Mister.” We could use some heat.

FAST TAKEInformation: www.legionarts.org/music/Buckwheat.htm and www.buckwheatzydeco.com

Title: “Lay Your Burden Down”

Artist: Buckwheat Zydeco

Label: Alligator Records

Performance: 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 17, CSPS, 1103 Third St. SE, Cedar Rapids

Tickets: $20 in advance at www.iowatix.com or $25 at the door