The members of Back Alley Brass Band, a Kansas City based New Orleans-style brass band, may be feeling the pressure of being the sole jazz-oriented act among the approximately 70 music bookings at the forthcoming Boulevardia festival. The event rivals the Kansas City Irish Festival as the city’s largest music-centric festival in a town associated with jazz.
Because it’s the precisely sort of ensemble that thrives amid liberal consumption of alcohol, the nine men of Back Alley Brass Band needn’t worry. The rowdiness of the group’s debut album indicates it will go over like gangbusters at the festival presented by Boulevard Brewing Company.
Kansas City’s answer to institutions like Rebirth Brass Band (the illustrious group’s “Do Whatcha Wanna” is covered here), Back Alley Brass Band plays with the giddy enthusiasm of a collegiate pep band representing a championship basketball team. For lubricated revelers looking for a rambunctious party, Back Alley Brass Band is a slam dunk.