Hurray for the Riff Raff is an Americana band from New Orleans. It was formed by Alynda Segarra, a singer-songwriter from the Bronx, New York, after she had moved to New Orleans in 2007. As Segarra's project, the group originally performed different styles of folk music while releasing several albums independently. Since signing with ATO Records, the band has released the critically acclaimed studio albums Small Town Heroes and The Navigator, featuring a more distinctive and comprehensive Americana sound.
Background
Alynda Segarra
Alynda Mariposa Segarra was raised by her Aunt and Uncle in the Bronx where she developed an early appreciation for doo-wop and Motown. She is an American rock musician of Puerto Rican heritage. Her mother is former New York City Deputy Mayor Ninfa Segarra. Segarra became a regular attendee of hardcore punk shows at ABC No Rio when she was young. She left her home in the Bronx at age 17, spending time crossing North America, hopping freight trains. In late 2018 Segarra joined organizers of Newport Folk Festival to travel to Puerto Rico and deliver instruments to various public schools. During that visit Segarra played her first concert on the island at La Respuesta in Santurce.
During this time, around 2007, Segarra became a part of the Dead Man Street Orchestra, a hobo band that was documented in a photo essay by Time Magazine in 2007. Segarra traveled with the group for two years, releasing two independent albums and embarking on freight train tours across the country.
Musical career
After two self-released albums, 2008's It Don't Mean I Don't Love You and 2010's Young Blood Blues, Hurray for the Riff Raff released a self-titled CD composed of Segarra's favorite songs from those records on Loose Music in Europe on March 21, 2011. Tracks from the band's debut release received airplay on BBC Radio 2 and BBC 6 Music. In February 2011, the band were featured in an article in The Times, based around the HBO TV series, Treme, with their track "Daniella" being listed in their selection of New Orleans' essential songs. In May 2012, Hurray for the Riff Raff released Look Out Mama on their own label, Born to Win Records and on Loose Music in Europe. No Depression said it "sounds like something The Band would’ve had playing on a Victorola while making Music From Big Pink in Woodstock.". The album was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee at The Bomb Shelter Studios and produced by Andrija Tokic. The record features "End of the Line,"My Dearest Darkest Neighbor on July 1, 2013 through Mod Mobilian Records and This Is American Music. The album was previously available only as a Kickstarter reward and in limited local release and featured handmade covers. Tracks on the record include songs by Townes Van Zandt, Billie Holiday, Gillian Welch, Leadbelly, John Lennon, Lucinda Williams, Joni Mitchell, Hank Williams, and George Harrison—and features Segarra's interpretation of Gillian Welch's "Ruination Day." Wall Street Journal describes Segarra's singing: "She has a subtle, expressive voice that she wraps around songs that draw on the sounds and styles of the American South, and her lyrics often takes unconventional tack on traditional subjects." Spin previewed a video of their song "St. Roch Blues". In February 2014, Hurray for the Riff Raff had their ATO Records debut, Small Town Heroes. The record featured “The Body Electric,” a song that NPR’s Ann Powers called “The Political Song of the Year” in 2014 and says the album, "sweeps across eras and genres with grace and grit." Describing Segarra's music, NPR says "Segarra's morning-after alto might be the least showy great voice to hit the national scene this year." In early July 2016, the band played the Danish festival of Roskilde, to an enthusiastic audience. In December 2016, they announced a new record, The Navigator on Pitchfork with the first single "Rican Beach." The album was released on March 10, 2017 on ATO Records. In 2019 'Pa'lante' won 'Best Music Video' at the SXSW Film Festival Jury and Specials Awards.
