Like a good Louisiana gumbo, Melbourne trio Opelousas are the perfect combination of ingredients that for whatever reason, just works.
“The first time we played together as a trio was just before the record button was pressed and we recorded our first few tracks,” fiddle player and guitarist Alison Ferrier says.
“It fell together beautifully and we seemed to really play off each other naturally. We go to some pretty interesting places and it just seems to be one of those effortless combinations that you don't come across very often and we're just very lucky it all fit.”
Taking their name from the city in Louisiana where Zydeco music first developed, Opelousas play what they call 'bare-boned blues for the freewheeling mind', a zany combo of swinging, swampy blues and good, old-fashioned rock & roll.
“We are actually very pleasantly surprised that people are talking about us and saying very nice things,” Alison says. “I don't know what it is but it seems to be a bit of a magic combination and people seem to be responding well. So we're really excited about that.”
Joining Alison in Opelousas is guitarist and mastermind of the group Kerri Simpson and drummer Anthony Shortte. Together for only a year, Opelousas have already released their debut album 'Opelousified'.
“We're definitely making some waves, which is really exciting but the fact is we just love doing it so whether people were into it or not we're just digging it and have a really great rapport onstage,” Alison says.
“We really believe in each other so it's just a wonderful thing. We've got so much freedom; it's a very organic process and we give each other the freedom to do exactly what we want to do. If we decide to go off on a tangent, we can. People have received the album incredibly well, so we're really excited and happy about that. We're getting some very lovely feedback.”
Opelousas finish out 2019 (and kick off 2020) with a week-long stint at Woodford Folk Festival. It will be the first time Opelousas perform at Woodford and Alison hopes to make the most of it by playing to as many people as possible and giving them a taste of the Opelousas flavour.
“We've got quite a few shows actually, so we're there for the whole week,” she says.
“We don't have a strategy but I imagine we'll save some of the more intense, rocking stuff for the later night shows rather than the middle of the day. We'll be looking for a nice, chilled-out groove for the earlier shows I imagine and maybe finish off with a toe tapper.
“We've got to make sure we don't go too crazy on the first couple of nights because that's what happens – you get excited and stay up all night. So we're going to try and behave ourselves and pace ourselves until New Year's Eve.”
