Swampland Jewels, led by Iowa City music veteran Nate Basinger, is a band that’s found its niche, combining music from Louisiana’s musical tradition with a mélange of jazz, country and roots rock. The Jewels also represent the hard-to-define terroir of Iowa music, a “why not?” sense of musical adventure.
Basinger credits Iowa City professor and folklorist Harry Oster with introducing him to the music of Louisiana and selling him his first accordion, now the lead instrument for Basinger’s compositions and cover songs. He evokes Cajun and zydeco music with the Jewels, but they seek their own level. Their uptempo songs are a bit slower and more relaxed than zydeco, less rave up, more chill out.
The Swampland Jewels are all Eastern Iowa veterans. Bassist Marty Christensen has played with local guitar legend Dennis McMurrin for decades. Basinger plays keyboards with the Diplomats of Solid Sound. Drummer Forrest Heusinkveld and Eddie McKinley play in the Iowa City hip-hop band Uniphonics. Randall Davis plays with Dave Zollo’s Body Electric. Totaled up, these musicians have been part of dozens of other local bands. They’ve been on stage at Gabe’s and the Mill more times than you’ve had hot meals.
You can hear that experience in the songs. Their musical rapport, and the fun they’re having playing together, jumps out of the speakers. Basinger and Heusinkveld produced these recordings, but Luke Tweedy’s contribution as engineer at Flat Black Studio is subtle but effective. The album has a clear, lively sound capturing the interplay between the players.
The Jewels’ song “Freeman’s Country Dance” would be at home at one of the small-town jam sessions Harry Oster loved to record. Basinger’s accordion rides on top of Heusinkveld’s shuffled groove, evoking a pan-American small-town dance. It’s in the middle of the Cajun, polka and conjunto triangle.
“Lover’s Wine” is a Jewels original, a country waltz. The accordion outlines a strong melody with a singing quality. “Spanish Road” has a calypso feel, and Basinger sensibly stays away from imitating a Caribbean accent. The song synthesizes the calypso influence without being merely imitative.
“Chapeau Macquerel” has some Cajun folk to the melody, but the arrangement is closer to what Ramsey Lewis might do, with Basinger trading his accordion for electric piano. This is far from the traditional Cajun sound but they make it work.
“Funky Miracle” is a cover of a Meters song. The original has a prominent organ part that’s gone, leaving more room for the unison guitar and accordion. Heusinkveld’s drumming doesn’t imitate the inimitable Zigaboo Modeliste, but introduces a swing so strong it feels jerky and ready to fall apart. But it hangs together into a completely different funk.
“Flor Marchita” is by Narciso Martinez, a pioneer of conjunto music. The Jewels slow down their Cajun-influenced style, but still play the song faster than Martinez, with a bounce not in the original. Conjunto is every bit as infectious as zydeco music, and when the Swampland Jewels take it on, it’s not just fun, it’s a deep connection between the two musical traditions.
Playing music with roots in folk traditions walks a fine line. If you’re too perfect at imitating the original music, you lose the spirit by focusing on the form. The Swampland Jewels use Louisiana music as a starting point, but then go off on their own, finding new grooves and connections to other folk music traditions. They connect to traditional music not as museum curators but as living performers.
This article was originally published in Little Village’s May 2024 issue.
