Take musicians who’ve played with the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards, the Neville Brothers, Bonnie Raitt, Harry Connick Jr., Soulive and Etta James, and mix them together.
That’s the recipe for a great live band with some of the funkiest music this side of New Orleans — Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk.
“It’s different from pretty much everything else I’ve done,” Neville said. “This band is five guys, and everyone’s contribution is equally important.”
And make no mistake — although Neville is the son of the legendary Aaron Neville, this isn’t his dad’s band — or music. Sure, his father’s rich musical legacy has added to Ivan Neville’s, but it’s not the only influence on him, by any means.
“We do what we like to play,” Neville said. “Obviously there are people who are maybe familiar with the Neville name and come to check us out because of that tie-in … but we are way funky.”
At festivals in, around and beyond New Orleans — including Jazz Fest and Mardi Gras — fans have come to know and follow the band through its shows and the album available at them. A new album, “Everybody Wants Something,” should be available sometime in the next several weeks.
If you go
Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk
Where: Living Earth Festival at Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW
When: 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday
Info: Free; americanindian.si.edu
Neville said the songs developed over about a two-week period over the past few years when band members would have ideas and concepts and bring them to the band. In the nature of a true consortium, there’s no one standout songwriter or player, which is just how they like it. “It’s a band,” he said. “We all work together. Maybe one guy contributed more on one [track] then another, but we all work on them together.”
The band has come to be its own force in music just through the sheer intensity of its shows.
“It’s going to be funky, fun and good,” Neville said of the upcoming show. “I don’t know what to tell people to expect because I never know, myself.”
Neville’s voice betrays his love for the energy of the band. The members are committed to what he calls “barnstorming the U.S.” to continue to build their fan base.
“This is a true band,” Neville said. “These are the baddest cats out of New Orleans, and this is the music we absolutely love playing. We got to spread the word.”
