"The band were wild, the audience were wild, the event was sold out, some people considered that the bands finest hour was after the power cut off at Midnight - but that was only because they carried on under acoustic power around the hall and in and out of the audience. The evening finished off in a frenzy of foot stomping and applause."
Our next gig will be...
at the Morecambe West End Festival on Saturday 17th July
12.00-12.30pm - it's FREE!
About Off The Rails:
With up to 20 musicians playing jazz, folk, Latin, rock, klezmer, African, funk and swing-influenced tunes, Off the Rails is something of a musical phenomenon.
From joyous African tunes to slower and more sensuous numbers the band's repertoire knows no bounds. Other tunes include the deeply funky, the powerful Brazilian carnival tune Maracca Tattoo, the bitter-sweet Silence and stonking dance tunes.
The band is made up of professional and amateur musicians from the Lancaster area and has been playing across the northwest for ten years. Many of Off the Rails' pieces are written or arranged by band members.
Band History:
When comes to music, Off the Rails creative jazz orchestra is unique.
Picture up to twenty musicians, playing fabulous original compositions with seemingly boundless passion and enthusiasm, and you have the phenomenon that is OtR. You’ll hear a powerful horn section, irresistible rhythms from our drummers and some killer solos.
From hot Latin and funk dance nights to more mellow jazz and blues gigs, OTR covers the lot. Our members come from a variety of musical backgrounds and we simply love to play all sorts of music including Latin, rock, funk, Klezmer, swing, contemporary jazz, African rhythms, blues, reggae, ska and even a bit of contemporary classical.
Band members write many of our tunes and we also perform new arrangements of well-known numbers. Multi-instrumentalist and composer, Ben McCabe, leads OtR and is constantly introducing new music to the band’s repertoire.
Throughout the year we put on our own gigs and perform at other events and festivals in the north of England. We are based in the city of Lancaster in Lancashire and currently rehearse at Beaumount College.
We formed almost ten years ago as part of a project with two other creative jazz orchestras in the north of England with funding from the Arts Council. Since then the band has continued to evolve and has performed with many musicians and composers including chart-topping band Nizlopi, sax player and composer Andy Sheppard and trumpet maestro Abram Wilson from New Orleans.
The band also also worked with many composers and musicians from the Lancaster and Morecambe area. We are always looking for new musical opportunities and chances to perform to new audiences.
Current band members: