The Unique Experience Of Youngblood Brass Band

Youngblood Brass Band’s performance at The Phoenix on the 5th November was a bit of a surreal experience. Middle-aged women were slumped against the wall being coaxed away by their equally intoxicated friends and balding men were breaking into scarily enthusiastic dance routines, while the few students present observed with more calm appreciation.

That’s not to say Youngblood Brass Band weren’t the kind of act that could slot into emerging music. The older demographic only served to make us question whether the younger generation have been missing a trick. Having never heard of the ten-piece from Oregon, we were sold on the concept of energetic brass combined with hip-hop. And at their best, that’s exactly what they delivered. A seamless fusion of tight, fast, exciting brassy jazz with furious rap verses that lended a whole new dimension to the character of the songs. That said, they didn’t always hit the mark. Some songs blended into each other and were hard to distinguish between, and although the rap is a huge credit to the music when it’s done right, it sometimes sounded a bit drowned, like it was tagged on for the sake of it.

Their sound has huge potential, but we found it hampered by a rather uninspired image. D. H. Skogen - the band’s rapper - donned a stereotypical sweatpants and cap combo for the occasion, and appeared to be standing in front of overgrown members of a college band in branded T-shirts. A sharper, crisper suited image that acknowledges their classic roots could better be used to promote their originality, by contrasting the styles of the two genres.

In terms of stage presence we also feel that they lacked unity. Most band members brought incredible energy to their performance, driving the audience along with them, but a couple didn’t even look like they were particularly enjoying it, as good as their playing was. That said, too much leaping around from a ten-piece could simply end in chaos, so maybe it’s for the best.

It must be stressed how good Youngblood Brass Band are as musicians though. They showed incredible prowess in their fast, complex sections ranging from crazy jazz reminiscent of Soil & “PIMP” Sessions to beat-driven hip hop to slower big band sounds, sometimes in the same song. We particularly took note of the drummer. Through his tireless, furious and technically flawless playing the songs were driven with great force, but didn’t dominate the performance to the detriment of everything else.

With no prior expectations aside from a couple of words of description, Youngblood Brass Band impressed us greatly. Although the performance and music wasn’t all there as a whole, the majority was incredibly enjoyable and a unique experience. They are clearly a group with huge potential, and we can only anticipate them getting better and better, eventually finding their space on the world stage.