Emerging a decade ago from the underground parties of Brooklyn to touring worldwide and recording a string of albums that’s racked up more than 60 million streams, the Hot Sardines’ own “potent and assured” (The New York Times), “simply phenomenal” (The Times, London) brand of reinvigorated classic jazz landed them at the center of a whirlwind.
In 2024, cofounders Elizabeth Bougerol (vocals) and Evan Palazzo (piano) debuted the Sardines' new project at Carnegie Hall, selling out within hours. Banned Jazz is a celebration of joy as an act of resistance and the unifying power of music, recounting how political forces in the U.S. and Europe tried (and failed) to suppress the music of Louis Armstrong, Josephine Baker, Benny Goodman and more, with its messages of cultural, racial, and sexual freedom. Frontwoman and powerhouse storyteller Bougerol weaves vivid historical vignettes — of dancehall raids, black-market recordings, and Nazi-era laws that made playing (or even hearing) jazz a punishable offense — into an electrifying live-music experience. Her rallying cry “These are times that need live music” has never felt truer.
The Sardines' latest recording is C’est La Vie, a bilingual affair of vintage jazz standards and originals. The title track, a Bossa nova original in French, is a timely ode to fully living each moment, even when you don’t know what the next will bring. A gospel-inflected “Moon River” came about when Elizabeth and Evan were tapped by director Greg Mottola to contribute music to the Miramax release Confess, Fletch, starring Jon Hamm and John Slattery (in which the band also makes an appearance); originals created for the project include the original “Adieu l’amour,” a foray into the sounds of film noir. And — recorded on the road while she was pregnant with her son — Elizabeth sings “La Vie en Rose” as a spare, hushed lullaby in duet with Bob Parins.
The Hot Sardines continue to tour, taking Banned Jazz on the road starting in 2025, which will also see the release of their seventh album.
