benbellmusic.com
In a tightly conceived new album, "Folk for Swingers," Ben Bell sneaks in melancholy whenever he can chance it.
A sound, a sight, and a taste have stuck with me this month; our “Adventure” issue sprawls from Nova Scotia to the underworld and makes time for bouillabaisse in the Bywater, but I’m finding flights right here at home. On a recent drive north to St. Francisville, I popped in Baton Rouge singer-songwriter Ben Bell’s new record, Folk for Swingers. Bell’s chosen audience needs just two things: a driving rhythm and a rakish melody, and he’s happy to provide, sneaking in melancholy wherever he can chance it. (“She always thought that she would have time being loved” is one early devastation.) Bell opens with a gosh-she’s-lovely ode in “Gin and Tonic” (“There’s nothing malicious, she’s just that delicious”) but after nine tracks of crooning verbosity, he’s wordless and guttural by the final number, “The Soul of Spring,” confessing, “I am a simple man whose life gets complicated. I try to understand the universe unaided.” He is, though, helped along by hi-hats, accordion, and a little surf rock synth as he tussles with existence, stuffing his songs with lushes, loveless marriages, and Louisiana Ladies (meet “Ponchatoula Lula” and “Baton Rougie Susie,” among others) then watching, curiously, as they thrive or crumble. Bell’s best heard live—his stories ensnare and his band, the Stardust Floor, sends a body reeling. Don’t miss the album release party, April 12 at Mid City Ballroom, with Minos the Saint opening. benbellmusic.com.
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Arlie Opal
"Arlie and Gilbert"
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Arlie Opal
"Hiking Trail"
I met story subject Laura Larsen for an interview at Baton Rouge’s Brew Ha-Ha earlier this month, but a charismatic pug interrupted us. “He’s part of my brand,” said artist Arlie Opal of her pet, Gilbert, who features prominently in her frequently updated exhibit at the coffee shop. Opal’s work, self-described maddeningly to her art school professors as “an eclectic mishmash,” truly is all over the place, from impish Harry Potter recreations to intricate watercolor landscapes, but is grounded by a few strong intentions on the artist’s part. Her landscapes derive from ambitious excursions with her husband (“We met at the Best Buy in Slidell and decided to bike around the country together”) and her pseudonym comes from her engagement ring’s stone and the Gaelic word for “oath,” a propelling promise to her late father that she’ll keep creating. “He was my number-one fan.” She chose a pug as pet for their reputation as companion animals, particularly for people suffering from mental illness. Anxiety and depression have daunted Opal over the years. She hopes her work can help stave off the stigma for others. See for yourself at Brew Ha-Ha, where Opal also hosts the Baton Rouge Sketchbook Club every other Saturday. Find the group on Facebook.
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Lucie Monk Carter
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Lucie Monk Carter
Part of my job includes visiting local eateries with big chef personalities driving the food. Bless me, I hadn’t been to the Holiday Inn. At the adjacent Sport Zone Pub & Grill (4848 Constitution Avenue), open to the public and not just hotel guests, Chef Omari Maiden fears no flavor as he works up daily specials that include maple-brushed salmon with zucchini and butternut squash noodles, olives, and walnuts. Somehow, it works. One dessert takes all manner of banana concoctions (pudding, cream, sliced, Foster) and crowds them into one bowl, complete with white chocolate morsels and chocolate shavings. The downside to all this crafty decadence? I now must visit every sports bar in the region, in case there’s another mad scientist like Omari Maiden there. See you on the other side of Buffalo Wing Mountain.
