Sweet Crude

Sweet Crude streaming "Isle Dans le Mer," playing shows (2 in NYC, 1 with Diarrhea Planet & Acid Dad)

New Orleans’ Sweet Crude is a seven-piece band that includes Alexis Marceaux and Sam Craft (who also play together as Alexis & the Samurai), Sam’s brother Jack, and more; and notably they have a strict “no guitars allowed” rule. Also notably, they sing in a mix of English and Cajun French, a dying language in their home state of Louisana. “French was beaten out of our grandparents, but our generation wants to rediscover it,” Alexis told Go NOLA.

They’re releasing an EP called Critters on June 8, followed by an LP called Créatures (release date TBA). Ahead of that, we’re premiering the EP’s lead single “Isle Dans le Mer.” It marries bouncy pop rhythms to classical-inspired arrangements (five of the seven members have music degrees) to catchy “na na na nas.” Whether you speak English, Cajun French, both or neither, this is genuinely enjoyable music that breaks language barriers. If you’re a fan of many-membered pop ensembles like The Polyphonic Spree or The Most Serene Republic, you may very well dig these guys too. Listen below.

Here’s what Sam Craft tells us about the new song:

“Isle Dans le Mer” (translated: “Isle in the Sea”) is, lyrically, a conversation between two people who are looking at the same exact situation with two completely different perspectives. We arranged for simultaneous vocals to be singing two unique sets of lyrics to drive home the fact that the two characters in the story really aren’t listening to each other. For example, he laments,”There’s a bridge under which I belong” while she is more hopeful: “We’ll grow rich with every pitch; it won’t be long”. The refrain, “Marié avec un concept / Après coucher avec un sentiment” (“Married to a concept / Sleeping with a feeling”) summarizes the war of words. The lyrics are bittersweet, but we didn’t want to write a sad song, so we maximized the “disco in outer space” vibe. After all, we’re from New Orleans, where you dance at funerals.

The band have a few upcoming shows scheduled, including two in NYC. First they play a 9:30 PM set at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 on June 8 (tickets), and then they play a Northside Festival show with Diarrhea Planet and Acid Dad at Brooklyn Bowl on June 9 (tickets). That’s a pretty cool bill all around.

All dates are listed, with the new song, below.

Sweet Crude — 2016 Tour Dates
6/8 – New York, NY at Rockwood Music Hall
6/9 – Brooklyn, NY at Brooklyn Bowl (Northside Fest) w/ Diarrhea Planet, Acid Dad
6/10 – Kingston, ON at Tett Center
6/11 – Montreal, QB at FrancoFolies de Montréal