LaFarge returns with new album

Pokey LaFarge brings back his signature country, swing, jazz and blues music to King Street Live in Masterton on March 28.

American roots luminary Pokey LaFarge is to play an encore Masterton performance in support of his latest album, Something in the Water.

Masterton promotion company Up With People is bringing LaFarge to Wairarapa, along with a full band, on March 28 as part of a 12-date Australasian tour in support of the St Louis-based country, swing and bluesman's latest studio album, which comes after his 2013 self-titled release on Jack White's Third Man Records. He will stage his return performance at King Street Live in Masterton, where he debuted in March last year to a full house. His upcoming album was set to drop on March 20, Up With People promoter Mark Rogers said.

The dozen-song set on Something in the Water was produced by Jimmy Sutton, who is best known for his work with JD McPherson, and the recording marks a milestone in a renowned career already sparkling with highlights.

LaFarge, who was born Andrew Heissler, is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who draws from a deep well of American musical traditions to create "distinctively personal music that's timeless rather than retro, transcending the confines of genre in a manner that reflects the artist's open-hearted attitude".

He blends elements of early jazz, ragtime, country blues and western swing to create a vibrant and deeply expressive body of work marked with an expansive musical vision and vivid storytelling sensibility.

LaFarge has also earned a reputation as a tireless, uniquely charismatic live performer, winning a loyal international fan base who regularly pack out his rousing, celebratory live shows, Rogers said.

Something in the Water features a diverse cast of talented players, including his longstanding touring combo, as well as members of such notable outfits as NRBQ, the Fat Babies, the Modern Sounds and the Western Elstons.

"The Midwest is at the heart of this record," LaFarge said.

"The people playing on these songs are from Wisconsin and Illinois and Chicago and St Louis, and there's a certain attitude that comes across in the songs and the way they're performed. I'm born and raised in the Midwest, and my family's been here for generations. This is where I'm from and how I think, and that's reflected in the music I make."

The Pokey LaFarge 2015 New Zealand Tour takes in mostly main centre venues from Auckland to Christchurch and the show hits King Street Live in Masterton on March 28. Tickets cost $40 and are available at kingstreetlive.co.nz, upwithpeople.co.nz and eventfinda.co.nz.