The Melatauns are the sound of the Frenchmen Street working musician at play. Led by bassist and songwriter Robert Snow — known on stage as Kid Eggplant — and his father Sidney Snow, a.k.a. Doctor Guitar, the band gathers some of the cream of the downtown scene: vocalist Pat Ricks, saxophonists Dominick Grillo and Bruce Brackman, and Anthony Donato, with a revolving cast of local players filling out the horns and rhythm section.
No two Melatauns records sound alike, and that's the point. Bards of Melatonia (2013) and Knuckle Sandwich (2015) run the whole history of rock 'n' roll from Louis Jordan and Fats Domino to distorted, almost-punk bar-band ragers like “Lies” and “The Poo Poo Song.” Swingin' Melatauns (2016) detours into Louis Prima-style big-band swing, while Peace, Love & Donuts (2021) and War We Love It (2024) keep the songwriting sharp and the humor intact — Kid Eggplant writes whatever the song demands, from doo-wop to heavy metal.
On stage the Melatauns are a party band with a deep bench: nine albums of originals peppered with old New Orleans R&B, Saints fight anthems (“Take 'Em to the Woodshed”), Mardi Gras parade cuts like “Outta Be In the Quarter,” and swamp-pop swayers like “Strange.” As Snow told Big Easy Magazine, the future is simple: keep playing when they can, keep putting out music. It's good medicine.
