Blues de musicien

The Pine Leaf Boys may be young, and their sound may be fresh and energetic, but there's nothing rebellious or even particularly adventurous about their style — they're not blending Cajun 2-steps with techno beats or writing Creole versions of Christina Aguilera songs or anything like that. All they're doing is playing classic Creole music in a time-honored style with an abundance of energy and fire. Granted, they do throw the occasional gentle curveball, such as their French adaptation of the Kitty Wells country weeper "Wild Side of Life" and the blues-drenched title track, but you'll have to listen carefully and know some French to catch the country cover, and the blues fits so seamlessly into the band's overall sound that it's easy to let that one slip past without noticing what a stylistic detour it really represents. As for everything else, it's raw, high-energy Southern Louisiana dance music, from the nicely chunky "Valse de Belizaire" to the strangely dark "Jig Cajin." Special note should be taken of the lurching "Pine Leaf Boogie" (with its charmingly clunky guitar solo) and the startlingly a cappella "Creole Mardi Gras." Very, very nice.