Red Rooster

An alt country band whose brand of rootsy Americana blends folk, blues, rock and hip-hop and a sharp dose of what might be called Mexican klezmer into a sound that is somehow both startlingly fresh and familiar at the same time, Red Rooster was formed in New York City in 1998 by friends Jay Erickson (lead vocals, acoustic guitar, harmonica) and Nat Zilkha (lead guitar, dobro). The two played initially as a duo but gradually expanded into a full band with Ted Shergalis on fiddle, Jamie Forrest on bass and mandolin, and Miles Crawford on drums, although Red Rooster is likely to feature horns, DJs, turntables, and even full choirs on any given night. The band self-produced and released Porch Songs in 2003, following it with the novel and ambitious double-disc Dose in 2005, which featured ten original songs done up in full 21st century electric style on the first disc with the same ten songs done stripped down and acoustic on the second disc, a concept that could have easily been indulgent and repetitive but worked wonderfully, allowing each tune to reveal itself in different ways.