Going Up?, the new LP by The Bama Lamas, sounds as if it were being beamed direct to your turntable from AM radio circa 1963 ... at least, if one were within range of a radio station that played a lot of frat rock. There are dance craze numbers. There are honkin' sax instrumentals. There are songs about a teenage wolfman and voodoo. There's even a Hank Ballard cover, always the sign of a discerning group of musicians. It's even mixed to mono, for an authentic, compressed thwack to your speakers. And the cover art nods to an earlier era as well, with the besuited band members making googly eyes at a statuesque platinum blonde. Just who are these guys?
Well, the curious have a chance to find out in person. Madison clubgoers can catch the Bama Lamas locally at the Frequency on Saturday, Jan. 10. Rock 'n roll is always best experienced live, and this show -- with Madison's Rotten Tommys, themselves currently working on an album -- will give listeners a chance to get up close and personal with some old-school sounds.
"We always bring a fun dance party vibe with us," says Bama Lamas bassist and singer Matt "Sal" Favazza via email. "Come on out and shake your tail feather all nite long. Also, bring your fez hats (recommended but not required)!" Madison, consider this your fez alert.
Bands aiming for a pre-British Invasion-era American greasy rock sound often fizzle by aping one specific sound too closely. The magnificent Fleshtones have avoided that trap for decades now by leavening the grease with the fuzz and attitude of garage rock, punk, and (at this point, 20-plus albums in) just about any other musical mode one can think of. The Bama Lamas pull off that trick as well by mixing their basic dance-friendly R&B groove with crunched-up guitars and a thick dual sax sound. As a bonus for '60s garage fans, Going Up? even finishes perfectly with a straight-up snotty garage punker.
The Bama Lamas hail from Chicago. Favazza says the band's beginnings date to a three-piece assault on a long-running rockabilly open mic, The Big C Jamboree, in 2007. "We held our breath, closed our eyes and blasted through a few numbers. We then stumbled off stage leaving a few people scratching their heads. Coincidentally, in February 2015 we've been asked to be the host band for the night. It's strangely come full circle ... sort of."
Astute stage-watchers will likely recognize some faces from other Midwestern bands; Favazza also plays in Bailey Dee's Late Night Bait, and Bryan was also in the Windy City legends Hi-Fi and the Roadburners. Singer/guitarist Chris Holtane and drummer Charles Collings are also in the Bama Lamas for Going Up?, and a recent addition to the lineup is piano player Bill Maryniak.
"Our sax player Tony 'The Face' Bryan was moving to Berlin to take his modeling career to the next level, and coincidentally met Bill through the Penthouse Playboys at a benefit/celebration of Erik 'Hi-Fi' Kish, lead singer of Hi-Fi And The Roadburners, who passed away in a motorcycle accident," writes Favazza. "We thought it would be incredible to have a piano player, and he signed on the dotted line. We love Bill! Tony since moved back to Chicago to rejoin us, and now we have six members, which is lots of mouths to feed and lots of fun!"
Will the Frequency's stage contain them? There's only one way to find out: Be there with your dancing shoes on January 10. (self-release, 2014)
