Thu 7/18 @ 7:30PM
Philly-raised pianist Johnny Iguana, who founded the Chicago-based Claudettes, has deep roots in the city’s blues scene. He’s performed with legends like Buddy Guy, Junior Wells and James Cotton; meanwhile, the Claudettes polished their purposefully unpolished style playing in funky suburban bars. (The owner of one such bar gave the band its name.)
It’s led to a sound that gleefully mixes eras and genres: rockabilly, punk, classic soul, vintage burlesque house jazz and piano-driven jump blues all bubble up in their cauldron of sound produced by Iguana, bassist/vocalist Zach Verdoorn, drummer/Claudettes co-founder Michael Caskey, and their new vocalist, towering Texan Rachel Williams.
The band has made frequent stops in this area to promote their equally frequent album releases, such as 2018’s Dance Scandal at the Gymnasium!, made with Black Keys producer Mark Neill. They recorded their follow-up, called High Times in the Dark, in 2020, and instead of touring due to the pandemic, they cranked out yet another album, called The Claudettes Go Out!, released in 2022.
Their latest stop is at the Music Box, where you can check out the new vocalist, and come early for dinner (reservation required; go here.)
musicboxcle.com/event/the-claudettes-july18/
Cleveland, OH 44113