An eight-piece brass band is coming to the Carver Community Cultural Center on Saturday, Nov. 6. The man who keeps their backbeat going on snare drum is Lumar LeBlanc.
“Soul Rebels is a musical group from New Orleans that mixes together hip-hop, funk, jazz, reggae, together with organic original instrumentation,” he said.
The rest of the Soul Rebels’ rhythm section is a bass drum and cymbal player, and a sousaphone player. Also in the lineup: two trumpeters, two trombonists and a sax player.
“And together, we make a hybrid collaboration of music called the Soul Rebels,” LeBlanc said.
Since every instrument is acoustic, there’s no way to fake ability. LeBlanc said there’s no place for electronic trickery.
“No, no way to do that at all. What you see is what you get and I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by some very talented musicians,” he said.
LeBlanc cites the very musical way they were all raised in New Orleans as determinants on where they’ve ended up.
“We were fortunate to be in great musical band programs from elementary, junior high to high school and college,” he said.
Premise to what the Soul Rebels do is the fact that, according to LeBlanc, acoustic music has the ability to move you like an amplified instrument just can’t.
“Oh yes, it is the transference of the energy. It’s a live human breathing, blood-flowing human being, putting that whole spirit into that instrument right smack into the energy of the human being in the audience,” he said. “And that's what makes the magic.”
If it plays out like it usually does, those attending won’t be sitting for their Saturday night performance at the Carver.
“It's going to be a high energy, impactful show. You gotta get up off your feet and move!” he said.
The show starts at 8 p.m. and tickets are $35.
