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Datri Bean CD Release Party at Swan Dive
More than 30 years ago, artists and their audiences looked to the 1920s and ’30s for inspiration. Bertolt Brecht, W.H. Auden, James Ensor, Evelyn Waugh. “The Great Gatsby,” “Cabaret,” “Pennies from Heaven.” Layered looks and New Vaudeville. Melancholy images and impending doom. Klezmer, jazz, brass and cabaret. To my generation, anything from before World War II seemed impossibly distant and yet familiar thanks to novels, songs, movies from the era, as well as the memories of parents and grandparents.
Diamond Gregg and Chase O’Brien
Austin artist Datri Bean has revived that fascination for a new generation, now removed from the Depression by 70 years. Along with White Ghost Shivers and the Minor Mishap Marching Band, which she leads, Bean has brought back the sound and mood of the pre-WWII era — one hears echoes of Kurt Weill — but with completely fresh musical and lyrical inventions that reflect her laid-back personal life here in Austin. A selection of those songs are collected on “Ruby,” which I’ve forced myself to put away.
Determinedly anonymous, in keeping with the atmosphere
I convinced Zach Theatre’s producer and director Dave Steakley and his partner, Tony Johnson, to meet me at Swan Dive for Bean’s CD release party. The commodious white-clad club on Red River Street is devoted to a more sophisticated vibe than some previous occupants along that row. It serves serious cocktails that come with serious prices.
Alex Randall and Wes Ducey
Bean’s fans ran the gamut, but I was delighted to find they listened intently to her melodious set. Some were dressed in vintage wear, others not. Like me, almost all were gripped by Bean’s almost off-the-cuff delivery of songs that will dig deep grooves into our collective memories.
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