By Frank Alkyer | Published August 2025
The Wild Iris Brass Band was born out of a beautiful good deed. Saxophonist Jeff Coffin (who was recently inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Dave Matthews Band) was talking to a good friend in their hometown of Nashville during the height of the freaking pandemic back in 2021. That friend was about to turn 50 and dreamed of spending his birthday in New Orleans, sipping coffee and enjoying a brass band, but COVID put the kibosh on that plan. That’s all Coffin needed to hear. He reached out to trombonist Ray Mason, and the two cooked up a scheme: They assembled a brass band and, on that friend’s birthday, second-lined down that friend’s street in Nashville, delivering a set of New Orleans brass band favorites. The moment was so much fun that the two began to write and arrange more brass band music, and the Wild Iris Brass Band emerged. The Wild Iris plays fun, big-hearted music with a groove so deep, you’ve got no choice but to smile, tap your foot and get up and dance. The horn arrangements are tight with plenty of surprises. On “We’re The Wild Iris,” trumpeter Steven Bernstein guests with a killer electric slide trumpet interlude. Neil Konouchi’s sousaphone kicks off a delightful, party-time take on Dolly Parton’s “9 To 5” with fierce soloing from Coffin, Mason and trumpeter Emmanuel Echem. “Eye Of The Cyclops” comes in hot as a Coffin composition shaped by Mason with a sweet swamp groove delivered by drummer Justin Amaral and enhanced by a guest guitar spot from Bob Lanzetti of Snarky Puppy fame. What’s awesome about this group is that it sticks to the spirit if not the script of brass band music. Take, for example, “Step Up,” an interesting reimagining of John Coltrane’s “Giant Steps.” It grooves with sweet horn slurs, and plenty of room for soloing. “Slow Express” serves as a swinging medium-tempo stroll with Béla Fleck sitting in on banjo and a chant that reminds you to “Buckle up, enjoy the ride/ Relax, gonna let it slide.” Top to bottom, front to back, Way Up is way fun, packed with great arrangements, tight group work, amazing solos and a lotta smiles.
