The Midwest is full of surprises such as the L.A. Carnival – one of the great, “undiscovered-in-their-time” funk ensembles.
Now-Again’s LP – Pose A Question, issued thirty three years after the L.A. Carnival recorded it – stands as a definitive indication to the breadth of the Midwest funk sub-strata, and there are still hundreds of other undiscovered recordings slowly disappearing into the earth with their original owners and makers. This document should be the crying sentinel, it shall announce to the world that funk is as American an art form as Blues, Gospel and Jazz and it is right time to stop ignoring and discounting it. Fleeting glimpses of this strange animal will never be enough, for we need engrossed exposure in order to fully understand its beauty and relevance.
On his deathbed, Roger Patterson denounced his scintillating film of a fleeting Bigfoot as a fraud, momentarily smashing the hopes of the faithful and elating the naysayers. Yet there are still staunch disciples of the wild creature and it has firmly concretized itself in the American folk patchwork. The emerging being that is unknown funk will never have last breath vituperations because it is itself a breathing and vital organ in the body of American music. Antipodeans beware, this is music to be believed in.
-Dante Carfagna