Brassroots District launches waitlist for “LA ’74”

There’s a sound rumbling through Los Angeles right now that feels like it’s been pulled straight out of a time capsule buried deep in 1974. It’s humid, horn-soaked and full of that gripping funk swagger that makes your shoulders twitch before your brain’s even caught on. The band behind it is Brassroots District, a collective revival of everything that made the golden era of funk and soul so enduring.

Brassroots District was born in New Orleans when Ari Herstand, a name already known in music circles as an author, artist and all-around hustler took a trip to the Crescent City to finish writing a book. Every morning, he’d run along the streetcar tracks with the pulse of 70s funk ringing through his headphones, spend his days tucked away in a coffee shop in the Garden District and his nights soaking up the local brass and jazz scene. By the time he came back to California, he was possessed; he called up his longtime friend and collaborator Andrew Leib and together they decided to build a band that could bring that era back to life.

Early Brassroots District shows became groundbreaking experiences that would’ve felt right at home at The Troubadour or The Whisky in their heyday. The crowd was invited to dress in flared pants and sequined tops, the lights glowed gold and red and the air pulsed with that warm analogue electricity. They headlined spots like the Moroccan Lounge, supported acts like Lawrence at the Teragram,and began cultivating a following that came as much for the world as for the music.

Now, the band is taking that concept to its logical conclusion, turning their shows into an immersive theatre extravaganza. Their upcoming production, Brassroots District: LA ’74, presents an entire night out in another decade. Opening February 7th at the legendary Jewel’s Catch One, it drops audiences right into the middle of a fictional 1974, where the band is throwing an album release party that goes deliciously off the rails. Fans become part of the story, rubbing elbows with record execs, family members and band insiders, watching creative tempers flare and dreams clash under the hot lights of fame.

The show runs for eight nights only, February 7th, 14th, 20th and 28th, then March 7th, 14th, 20th and 28th, with early and late performances each night. The waitlist is already live at BrassrootsDistrict.com and the general sale opens on January 14th. The venue itself, Jewel’s Catch One, has its own rich funk history, having hosted the likes of Chaka Khan and Donna Summer, the perfect place for this modern-day resurrection.

In the run-up to the show, the band has been teasing what’s to come with a string of knockout singles such as “You Caught Me Baby” which slinks and sways like a daydream, mixing the hazy sensuality of Curtis Mayfield with the bite of Sly Stone. Their latest comes with “Takin’ Back Day Dreamin’,” featuring guitar virtuoso Robert Randolph, which brings the sunshine and swagger in equal measure, all wah-pedals, groove-heavy bass and brass that sounds like it’s breathing. Both tracks come ahead of their debut self-titled album, Brassroots District, set to drop at the end of this month, a record that promises to channel every ounce of that 1970s fire through a modern lens.

Listen to Takin’ Back Day Dreamin’ (feat. Robert Randolph) below

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