Ghost Train Orchestra

Friday night the Ghost Train Orchestra caused structural damage to the roof of Barbes in Park Slope. Squeezing their crew of nine into a performance space the size of a steamer trunk, the band played a blistering set of tunes from their recent album Hothouse Stomp, prodded by ringleader Brian Carpenter. This meant plenty of Chicago and Harlem-centered big band swing from the twenties by the likes of Hartzell "Tiny" Parham and Fess Williams. Trombone slides and violin bows stabbed manically in all directions. Renowned "washboardiste" Rob Garcia thrashed his instrument within an inch of its life, in conspiracy with the crazed banjo brutality of Brandon Seabrook. Secret weapon Mazz Swift set down her violin at one point and leaned into the microphone for an earthy rendering of their one vocal number, "Gee Baby, Ain't I Good to You." After a brief intermission during which the stunned audience was allowed to sift through the wreckage, the Orchestra returned for a dizzying set of Raymond Scott and John Kirby numbers, an industrial age soundtrack to a demented cartoon that wouldn't stand a chance under Hayes Code scrutiny. Barbes never knew what hit them.









Ghost Train Orchestra:
Brian Carpenter (trumpet, harmonica)
Mazz Swift (violin, vocals)
Andy Laster (alto saxophone)
Petr Cancura (tenor saxophone)
Curtis Hasselbring (trombone)
Ron Caswell (tuba)
Avi Bortnick (guitar)
Joe Fitzgerald (bass)
Rob Garcia (drums, washboard)