I have been listening to Rupa and the April Fishessince I received the early pressing of their debut CD in the spring. I liked the tunes but knew nothing about the band itself. What I did know was that this music that was coming out of San Francisco has a distinctly international vibe and wondered why Rupa sang in French…was she a Parisian in California?

we are getting people emailing from Oklahoma and North Carolina asking to come… I would love to see the reaction in those places

The album eXtraOrdinary rendition has distinct Gypsy, French chanson, tango and swing currents but also there is a sort of cabaret feel to the songs or something of the early North American rough and ready Acadian folk. It’s a vibe rather than a distinct musical form. Picture a small, dark, hot and sweaty bar full of ‘immigrants’ on the edge of an American shanty town… the band is playing and punters are letting loose. That is pretty much the atmosphere Rupa and the April Fishes create.

With Rupa Marya on guitar and vocals backed by the April Fishes (whose name was inspired by “les poissons d’avril”, a similar concept to April Fools day) upright bass, cello, accordion, drums and trumpet the band delivers fresh and fun songs though often laced with serious lyrical content. ‘Poder’ (sung in Spanish) is about the inability of Mexicans to cross the boarder into America legally, often at the expense of their lives, and exemplifies much of Rupa’s concern for humanitarian matters.

As a part time physician, Rupa’s music is informed by her work taking care of people and being with them when vulnerable and/or dying. It’s not heavy going music though. The songs vary from a waltz with ‘Mal De Mer’, to the knees up party song ‘Plus Que Moi’ with its mad cowbell to ‘Yaad’ with a distinctly Eastern essence and an appearance of tablas.

‘world music’ — brown people playing music for white people

Of South Asian parentage, Rupa spent part of her childhood in Southern France, which would account not only for the ability to write in French, but also her empathy with that of the ‘other’, which is a reoccurring theme in her songwriting. Still, when we met for a chat I asked her why she chose to sing in a language other than English and how that was received. “I was looking for a way to explore the musicality of language, not just the meaning of words, but their rhythm…” She continues, “also post 9/11 everyone was suddenly scared of anything foreign.”

Rupa and her music might present a challenge to American xenophobia in the current climate, but they have yet to venture far from the cosmopolitan and integrated cities of the 2 coasts. “We haven’t played ‘in between’ [the coasts] but we are getting people emailing from Oklahoma and North Carolina asking to come… I would love to see the reaction in those places.”

Putting aside the idea of “world music”, which she described as “brown people playing music for white people,” Rupa spoke of “global music” and “global culture”. That there are pockets of people all over America who reject America’s inward looking culture and want to embrace and relate to a more “global culture”. Young people in particular interact with people from different cultures everyday on the street or on the internet and it is this audience, the disenfranchised and people angry with the Bush administration, that Rupa and the April Fishes developed a connection with musically.

I mentioned to her that “Gypsy” music was fairly familiar to European ears and it was interesting to hear something of this coming from California. “I am not trying to recreate Rom or French Chanson.” Rupa puts her music in the context of a great burgeoning music scene in San Francisco where she was able to gather together musicians to work with. Different musical traditions from her colleagues’ various heritages, whether several generations removed or musical interests picked up from traveling and living in different parts of the world, have incidentally been absorbed and incorporated into the band’s sound.

Live, this band is a great, delivering everything from a sultry sway to a bopping skiffle. The feel is saucy and fun and makes you want to join in. I do hope to catch them again, hopefully not in such a small, dark, hot and sweaty bar (in the heart of London rather than an American shanty town)… as I am sure Rupa and the April Fishes’ European audience will grow, demanding further tours in bigger venues. I certainly recommend picking up Extraordinary Rendition in the meantime. I can hear it playing now at your next (small, dark, hot and sweaty) party.

—With thanks to the ever-lovely folk at Cumbancha—