Cajun and Zydeco music occupies a space deep in the belly of American culture. Whilst early styles relate to the cultural enmeshing of Acadian, French, African and Caribbean influences, a new generation of contemporary musicians are revitalising the genre to reflect their own influences and experiences.  Raw, occasionally raucous and highly contagious, this is music to lift the mood, lighten the load and loosen the hips!

The album opens with the track, ‘Same Knife Cut The Sheep Cut The Goat’ by Horace Trahan. The drums pump out a straight-up rock beat whilst guitar and accordion take it in turn to lay down winding solos that work around the catchy chorus melody. The Pine Leaf boys also inject a rock’n’roll energy in to their retro tinged track, ‘Allons Rock’n’Roll’. On ‘Come Back To Me’ Lil Nathan And The Zydeco Big Timers stream in a slick R&B flavour with smooth vocals underpinned by lilting accordion and drum riffs. Forward-thinking Cajun band, Feufollet make an appearance with the track ‘Femme La Dit’. On this track the innovative band mix Cajun style with a laid-back jazz swing, twisting horns and coolly delivered female vocals. The track, ‘Return Of The Creole’ spotlights the accordion in all its glory. Jeffrey Broussard transverses the length of the instrument in virtuoso style whilst keeping the upbeat tune puffing along throughout. Steve Riley And The Mamou Playboys close the album with the excellent tune ‘Bon Rêve’.

This Rough Guide also comes with a full-length bonus album by Chubby Carrier And The Bayou Swamp Band. Chubby and his band play with a exuberant and high-spirited energy that has charmed fans worldwide – including the judges of the Grammy awards, who awarded the band a well-deserved accolade in 2011.