The inspiration for our band name, Cowboys & Frenchmen, is a short film by David Lynch, called The Cowboy and The Frenchmen. The film is a Western – but a “Lynchian” Western. Like many of his films, it is his unique, out-there interpretation of a classic genre. Similarly, a lot of our music has one foot firmly planted in a genre, while the other one is busy trying to kick down the genre’s door.
Owen Broder – saxophones
Ethan Helm – saxophones
Chris Ziemba – piano
Ethan O’Reilly – bass
Matt Honor – drums
Cowboys & Frenchmen is a new take on instrumentation, orchestration, and composition for the jazz quintet. The front line of two alto saxophones is the vehicle for reimagining the role of horns in a small group setting, charting new territory by exploring individuality within homogeneity.
The New York City-based quintet is releasing its second album, Bluer Than You Think, in October 2017 on Outside In Music. Their first release, Rodeo (Outside In Music, 2015), garnered terrific reviews and enjoyed top placement on radio charts. The release of Rodeo was celebrated at Joe’s Pub, one of New York’s most respected venues for creative music. Cowboys & Frenchmen was a featured presenter at the 2016 North American Saxophone Alliance Conference, which served as the centerpiece for a performance and educational tour through Texas. They performed at the D.C. Jazz Festival in 2016 as finalists in the inaugural D.C. JazzPrix Competition, and again in 2017 as a featured artist. They were also selected to perform at Umbria Jazz Festival’s 2017 Conad Jazz Contest.
