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On the back porch of his New Orleans home in 2004, high schooler Chad Penot and his friends K.C. O’Rorke, John-Michael Early, Russell Olschner, Bryan Santos and Mario Palmisano began rehearsal for what started as a school project. That small project blossomed into a funk-rock band with diverse influences known as Flow Tribe.
Flow Tribe presents a style that is difficult to pinpoint into one category. Cuban-Caribbean rhythms blended with R&B, soul, rock and hip-hop beats make for a unique sound highly influenced by New Orleans culture. Growing up under the prestige of distinguished New Orleans-based artists such as Louis Armstrong, Buddy Bolden and Allen Toussaint, the Flow Tribe band members are proud of where they hail from and look to stay true to their roots in their music.
“The one thing that binds us together is New Orleans music,” said John-Michael Early, who plays the harmonica, keyboard and washboard and sings in the band. “A lot of music in New Orleans has a funky backbeat to it, a groove that’s undeniable, and as long as we can make sure that is translated into our music, we know it’s something that we will like and it will be true to ourselves and our city. While we all have different musical backgrounds and individual tastes, at the end of the day funk is a common theme we can all agree on.”
While elements of Flow Tribe’s style have been compared to masters of funk-rock such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sublime and Phish, the band’s attitude and energy translates into their music and sets them apart.
“Flow Tribe is a team and a family, that’s at the heart of it,” Mr. Early reflected. “Our audience sees us enjoying ourselves and we do everything we can to break down the wall between us and them, and that’s what keeps our fans coming back for more. Always fresh, never stale. That’s what really sets us apart from the rest, I think.”
Flow Tribe is currently on tour performing hits from “Boss,” its latest hip-hop and R&B-driven album produced by New Orleans’s own Mannie Fresh, who is responsible for creating hits for artists such as Lil Wayne, The Notorious B.I.G. and Gucci Mane.
“Our previous fans are loving the new stuff. And because it’s different from our last couple of records, we’re noticing that we are able to attract some new ears as well, which is quite exciting for us,” Mr. Early said. “It debuted on the Billboard R&B album charts at No. 53, so we are getting some love from the R&B world, too, which we can’t be happier about.”
Flow Tribe will visit the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett to perform “Boss.” The band is no stranger to the Talkhouse; they’ve been performing there for about five years. “The Stephen Talkhouse is one of America’s legendary venues,” Mr. Early said. “People from coast to coast, especially Louisiana artists we come across, talk about the feeling in there. It is a gem and I wish we could play more places like that everywhere we go.”
Flow Tribe has no plans to slow down anytime soon. With the construction of their new headquarters and studio, Downman Sounds, under way in New Orleans, big things are in store for the band.
“We look forward to producing engaging video content as well as more recorded songs as soon as we move in. Music and video are quickly starting to realign themselves together, so we want to be able to give that experience to our fans,” Mr. Early said. “Actually, as we speak we are preparing the live room at the studio for a live performance of new songs from the album that we will look to release with accompanied video fairly soon. The studio will also be available to other touring and local bands, so we hope for plenty of inspiring collaborations in the near future.”
Flow Tribe will perform at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett on Tuesday, June 20, at 9 p.m. Tickets are $10. Visit stephentalkhouse.com.
on Jun 13, 2017