The Claudettes

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What’s better than jazz, blues or rock ‘n roll? How about a band that fuses all three? The much-acclaimed Claudettes are coming to Madison, bringing their multifarious sound with them in the form of songs from the new album, Dance Scandal at the Gymnasium! It’s produced by Grammy-winning producer Mark Neil (Black Keys, Old 97’s), and their old-school sound is getting universal raves. Guaranteed to rock the house.

$10.

press release: On their head-spinning new album DANCE SCANDAL AT THE GYMNASIUM!, The Claudettes summon early blues, '60s pop-soul and Cramps-style psychobilly with a set of songs searching for the humanity hidden behind the vitriol, isolation and communication breakdown of the Internet Age. On this new album, produced in glorious throwback style by Grammy-winning Black Keys/Old 97's producer Mark Neill, The Claudettes introduce the lineup that’s been touring for two years: piano, drums, "Bass VI" guitar and three singers. The touring lineup: Berit Ulseth on vocals, Johnny Iguana on keyboards and vocals, Zach Verdoorn on bass/guitar and vocals and Danny Yost on drums. PLEASE NOTE: original drummer Michael Caskey will be filling in for Danny Yost on drums for this date.

The band recorded at Neill's Soil of the South studio for 10 days, tapping Neill's vast knowledge and collection of vintage equipment including marxophones, mellotron sounds, rare fuzz pedals and old Gretsch drums and Rickenbacker bass. The stunning sonic results, as Neill colorfully puts it: "Haunted cabaret...David Lynch movie music crossed with Allen Toussaint's driving piano sound...Like Otis Spann and Mark Sandman from Morphine sitting in with Keely Smith…I love this record, it's crazy good."

https://theclaudettes.bandcamp.com/album/dance-scandal-at-the-gymnasium

Billboard -- "The 12-song set... showcases a different lineup of the band, one that's been honed via live performance during the past two years and that showcases vocalist Berit Ulseth. But that's only made the Claudettes' distinct and idiosyncratic blend -- punk, blues, R&B, rockabilly, some jazz -- more potent."

The Second Disc —  "The sound is raw and immediate – with a piano, bass guitar and drums core – thanks to the band’s use of vintage equipment and instruments.  This Scandal boasts punk spirit, earworm melodies, and a neo-retro sound that’s loaded with appeal."  

No Depression -- "I hear touches of Jerry Lee Lewis at his most manic (which fits, considering that Johnny sometimes pounds those keyboards to freaking smithereens), of cinema (some of the vocal overlays are freaky as hell), of rock 'n' roll (and not the standard rock 'n' roll but the rock 'n' roll you might have heard at some of them house parties Chicago and the Deep South are famous for), of multiple genres wrapping around one another until you cannot recognize any one of them. It must be fun as hell to play in this band."

The Vinyl District -- "They’ve been tagged as punk-blues, but on this CD immediately connect as something other/ more than growled out Willie Mabon covers slathered in amp gristle. This is partly due to the piano of founder-constant member Johnny Iguana, who’s played with Junior Wells and Otis Rush. But if steeped in tradition, The Claudettes aren’t a replication (or as said, a mere dirtying up) of it, instead exuding comfort with contemporary motions (Mark Neill produced) as new vocalist Berit Ulseth shines, especially on “Pull Closer to Me” and “Death and Traffic.” Iguana’s skills are fully showcased on the title track. A-"