TVD Live: Freret Street Festival, 4/2

TEXT: TRENT DUNBAR | PHOTOS: TRENT DUNBAR and HILLARY KURLAND | The Freret Street Festival is a one day neighborhood festival in Uptown New Orleans. The main business corridor along six blocks of Freret Street is blocked off to traffic allowing neighborhood residents and visitors to peruse the endless vendors selling everything from vintage records to upcycled art and even fried shrimp on a stick, as well as three stages featuring a variety of local favorites. This year’s lineup included numerous established New Orleans acts as well as a number of up-and-coming young bands from nearby Loyola and Tulane universities.

The first time I saw Stoop Kids was about four years ago at a wild show packed into the Circle Bar. My most vivid memory of that night was everyone in the tiny bar going absolutely berserk during their cover of Blink-182’s “Stay Together for the Kids.”

Although they have finished up with college, their set Saturday afternoon managed to keep the high energy vibes I remember with front man Griffin Dean hopping down off the stage, running around the crowd, and dancing and singing with fans down front. Their songs incorporated multiple genres, covering everything from soul, Latin, funk, noise, and straight ahead rock.

Sexual Thunder (pictured at top and above), another young group consisting mainly of Tulane grads, took the stage after Stoop Kids. The guys in Sexual Thunder seem dead set on bringing back the flamboyant, flashy ’70s funk vibes and musical stylings of artists like Prince and George Clinton with killer horns.

Although they are some seriously skilled musicians, they don’t appear to take themselves too seriously, wearing outfits decked out with spandex and neon faux-fur and playing original crowd favorites like “Julius Pleaser” and “Freak Flag.”

Tribe 1

Tribe 2

Tribe Nunzio (pictured above ) is a band definitely not right out of college. Originally formed in the 1980s, they reunited to play a set at the Freret Street Festival. Describing Tribe Nunzio’s sound is not an easy task. Their unique musical stylings incorporate elements of funk, blues, and post-punk, with jam band tendencies to create a moody and introspective, yet groovy and danceable final product.

Tank 5

From their crazy outfits to their super danceable set that included a crowd-pleasing cover of the Rugrats theme song, Tank and the Bangas are just a funky fun time. In my opinion, people over use the term “pipes” when describing soul singers. However, that term would not be wasted on Tank. Her deep soulful voice rang out over the whole festival, supported by equally talented backup singers (pictured below) and the rest of her killer band.

Tank 4

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