John the Martyr at the Bowery Electric

In 2015, guitarist Kyle Ridley relocated to New York City from New Orleans, Louisiana. He had written a few songs and was hoping to find someone to sing them. He found Harlem-raised William Hudson on a subway platform busking in an a cappella doo-wop group called Spank. Ridley asked Hudson, who was weaned at the Apollo Theater since early childhood and had fronted several local groups, to audition for a project he would assemble. Ridley and Hudson recorded demo tapes, and these helped recruit other musicians, including Ridley's New Orleans buddy, drummer Dustin DiSalvo. John the Martyr, named after a Manhattan church where Ridley had stored his equipment, was born in 2017. Personnel has changed several times, but Ridley, Hudson, and DiSalvo remain the axis on which the music spins. John the Martyr released its self-titled debut album on June 14, 2019.

At the Bowery Electric tonight, John the Martyr's skeleton was slightly reframed with the addition of two backing vocalists and no horn section. A thinner lineup than the previous 10- and 11-piece ensembles, Ridley, Hudson, and DiSalvo were joined by vocalists Chloe Borthwick and Mike DeLouis, keyboardist Darren Denman, bassist Aiman Mohd Radzi, and conga player Misia Vessio; two guests, trumpet player Tom Killacky and trombonist Will Hawley, jammed with the band at the very end of the performance. Throughout the set, John the Martyr played vintage-sounding soul songs with a rocking backdrop. The hinge of the music was anchored on Hudson's deep vocals and Ridley's lyrics and melodies, with the rest of the musician supporting and supplementing. Hudson's mighty vocal power was impressive, and the band did well in following his leads with a strong punch. The musicians were not necessarily building on old rhythm and blues traditions, but with Hudson singing so soulfully, the comparisons became inevitable and nostalgia ran rampant. John the Martyr married new songs and arrangements with a classic sound, and this was a winning combination.