This is a horse of a slightly different colour compared with 2012's The Life & Times of the Hot 8 Brass Band, which was fired up by the heat of the night and the New Orleans brass brigade's euphoric bump-and-stomp live show. Tombstone is a far more considered mess of the blues, jazz and funk. The same boisterousness is evident, but it's an album for the comrades and compatriots they've lost along the way, including four band members who were shot dead. But this testament to lost souls is less of a dirge and more of a celebration, with the eulogies and respect paid and played on Shot Gun Joe (dedicated to their former trombonist, Joseph Williams, shot by the police) and Homies, full of N'awlins spirit and vim. This is the sound of a band who've been through a lot, but who are far from done. hot8brassband.com
Download: Shot Gun Joe, Take It to the House