Soul Rebels Interview - Part 3

And so, we come to part 3. As Soul Rebels' Lumar LeBlanc continued to sit in traffic, we discuss the band's unique sound.

TGB: WHY THE LENGTH OF TIME IN BETWEEN ALBUMS?

Lumar LeBlanc: Basically, we always try to put out quality and not quantity. The timing has to be right. We don't just want to put out music for music's sake.

IS THIS A SOUND THAT IS ABOUT TO EXPLODE OR IS IT UNIQUE? IN OTHER WORDS, IS ANY ONE ELSE DOING WHAT THE SOUL REBELS ARE DOING?

I think we are on the brink of something new and explosive, but I really feel that because we have a good fan base, and we make our living off the music, you must have somebody out there who is listening. But it still has a long way to go as far as being totally accessible. Until you can put the radio on and hear it consistently, then it would still have to be considered something that the six of us have invented in the laboratory. If we continue to grow, this will go the way of rap music and explode.

AND STILL, THE SOUND CANNOT BE PIGEONHOLED.

It's kinda like Outkast. Even though they are a hip hop group, you can hear that there are all kinds of other elements in the music. They've grown from the Southernplayalistic type of stuff to what they are now. Their stuff is wild and it's appreciated by other genres. That's definitely how we want our music to be. We don't want to be pigeonholed.

HERE'S A HYPOTHETICAL SITUATION. I AM THE OWNER OF A MUSIC STORE. WHERE DO I PLACE YOUR RECORD IN MY RECORD STORE?

You would probably have to put it in the jazz or hip-hop category. Hip hop is where many young people who buy music will tend to look, so that is one place where it would be advantageous to us. With jazz, you would place it there because it has a lot of bass, horns, and tuba.

WOULD YOU SAY HIP HOP IS MISUNDERSTOOD?

In some rights, it is not and in some, it is. Hip hop is basically provoking - thought provoking, provoking of all types of expression. You have gangsta rap which promotes its senstivities whether they are positive or negative. You have more commercial rap which is understood in its own way. Then you have some forms of hip hop and rap that are not understood because you are not involved in the lifestyle that shows where this music is coming from. So, I think it is misunderstood in one regard because it is given a bad label by some in our society, but in other regards it does what it's supposed to do. Who would have thought that in 2005, hip hop is one of the most profitable categories in the musical genre.

FINALLY, WHAT IS NEXT?

The immediate goal is to try to get the business of Soul Rebels Brass Band Incorporated moving forward. Then we can focus on other pieces. We have material that could be ready for recording right now, but we are constantly working and touring. We would love to work with people like Quincy Jones. He definitely has a vibe for horns.

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As of this writing, the Soul Rebels were preparing for a tour that would take them to venues from coast to coast. The culminating, and, in my opinion, the highlight of the tour, will come in 2006 when the Soul Rebels invade Lincoln Center. If you have any chance to catch the band, do so. Your feet will thank you and the rest of your body will not regret it either.