Ray’s Vast Basement

Once you get past the unintentional connections to K.C.’s best-known adult superstore, Ray’s Vast Basement has one of those rare band names that actually describes the group’s music. With a penchant for storytelling, acoustic instruments, sultry grooves and moments of Beat clarity, On the Banks of Time, its latest, sounds like members of Soul Coughing and Widespread Panic setting a James M. Cain novel to music. The band tells a story well, but even more important, its musical quirks fulfill a purpose. The violins, vibes, horns, crowd noise and mayhem are in the mix because they sound good, not just because there were a few spare tracks to fill. In Ray’s Vast Basement, the junk is well-crafted, fascinating and not quite like anything you’ve heard before.