The Stolen Sweets have been delighting fans with their wonderful early 20th-century revival-style music show. By meshing jazz and ragtime from the 1930s and ‘40s, loosely based on the work of the Boswell Sisters, The Stolen Sweets have locked on to a niche market with their unique music.
While working on their new album, Sleepytime in Chinatown, The Stolen Sweets decided to approach the recording process as it was done back in the turn of the century.
“We tried to capture the sound and spirit of the period,” said singer Lara Michell. “We did all of our vocals standing around one microphone to capture them the same way they did back then,” said singer Lara Michell.
The group enlisted Tony Lash (Dandy Warhols, Heatmeiser, Poison Idea) to head up the controls on their recording stint at Kung Fu Bakery! in Portland.
“We wanted to capture the true style of the 1930s,” said Michell. “We wrote and recorded six originals and six standards.”
But while the group’s sound may be trapped in time, their democratic writing process isn’t. Each person in the band contributes to the writing and arrangement of all the material.
“Pete and David arrange the bare bones of the songs and then the rest of us add our bits and arrangements once the base is established.”
Working organically helped The Stolen Sweets become such a cohesive unit that the band was able to record the entire record in just four days.
The crazy thing is that the band was never supposed to get this far in the first place.
“The group started out as a one-off tribute to the Boswell Sisters,” said Michell. “As we started learning these complex songs and practiced them, we decided to make it more than just a one-time deal.”
Had it not been for this monumental decision, The Stolen Sweets would have missed out on countless domestic shows, a European tour and two celebrated albums. The Stolen Sweets were lucky enough to play at last year’s Shining Party at the Timberline Lodge and were invited to play at the Boswell Sisters Festival in New Orleans, on what would have been Connie Boswell’s 100th birthday. By displaying a strong work ethic, resourcefulness and a little stick-to-itiveness, The Stolen Sweets have blazed a jazzy trail across the globe, delighting international fans. Now they return with a new album and a CD release show.
The band approaches their live performances the same way they record: no frills, just a focus on the craft. The group doesn’t mess with fancy costumes, sets or other campy items to capture the Golden Era: they wear simple dresses and suits, letting the music speak for them.
The only exciting visual stimulation is the group’s unique merchandising: aside from the typical shirts, CDs and posters, the band sells chocolate. They have their own brand of delicious sweets that they sell at their shows. Sorry, they don’t appreciate it if you steal them.