NEW ORLEANS FESTIVALS - Jazz Fest Features

GLOBAL RHYTHMS - Anders Osborne

You'd never guess gravel-voiced guitarist Anders Osborne didn't grow up in New Orleans. But the Swedish native only noticed his daughter's accent when his son was born just before Mardi Gras. "She was saying 'Ahndahhhs,'" he says. "I was like, 'No, that's not how you say it."

Osborne has New Orleans vibes running so deep that he hardly notices the unique musical he's put together. For two years, his rock-oriented band has been counterpointed by sousaphonist Kirk Joseph. The former Dirty Dozen tuba player brings the thick bottom notes of the brass bands into the band.

More recently, Osborne played with Big Chief Joseph "Monk" Boudreaux of the Golden Eagles, resulting in the album Bury the Hatchet. Mardi Gras Indian music is one of the strongest influences in New Orleans music in terms of funky beats and call and response singing.

"I play call and response. I heard traditional African music when I was young. Beautiful galloping rhythms, haunting melody," he says. "What Monk does is straight out of Africa."

After 15 years in the Crescent City, Osborne is home, splitting time between his music and spending time with his family. He only became serious about songwriting after he arrived in New Orleans. In his early 20s, he had roamed the world from Europe down to Africa. Hitchhiking in Yugoslavia, he met a fellow traveler from Slidell, just across the lake from New Orleans. It was that friend that drew him to New Orleans. But he stayed when he realized the music and culture were a natural fit.