Ten years after a chance encounter with a European jazz band set them on a new musical path, Fairhope-raised brothers Noah and Josh Thompson are marking a decade of Roman Street with the release of their sixth studio album, “Balcony of the World.” The duo will celebrate the milestone with a hometown release show Friday, March 13 at 5 p.m. at the Halstead Amphitheater on the campus of Coastal Alabama Community College, 450 Fairhope Ave., with admission by a suggested $10 donation.
Roman Street’s story began a decade ago when Noah and Josh discovered Tonic Strings, an acoustic European jazz outfit whose blend of flamenco and gypsy jazz textures captivated the brothers and inspired them to start writing and performing together. What started as a pastime shared between siblings, played privately at home and on weekends at local cafes, grew into a full-time career neither of them had planned on.
“It was something Josh and I liked to do together, privately in our homes, and on the weekends at different cafes,” Noah said of the band’s early days. “I don’t think any of us, especially myself, anticipated doing this 10 years later. We all had different plans and aspirations. That’s one of the cool things about music. It takes you on different turns in your life that you wouldn’t have taken.”
“Balcony of the World” was recorded across three locations, reflecting the band’s evolving process. Much of the album took shape at Day 6 Entertainment with longtime engineer Matt Damico of Mattymix Productions, who has worked with Roman Street on several previous albums. For the first time, Noah and Josh also recorded portions of the album from home before completing the final tracking sessions at Dauphin Street Sound.
“We recorded at that location years ago when it was Jada,” Josh said of the Dauphin Street Sound sessions. “We had been there once before, but just wanted to see what they had done. We had such a great experience recording there. We liked all the sounds that we got, and it was easy to work there.”
The album’s title track has a backstory rooted in a Roman Street performance in Delray Beach, Florida, where the band had not yet settled on a name for one of its new songs. Before playing it, the brothers asked the crowd for suggestions, and an audience member proposed “Balcón Del Mundo,” or “Balcony of the World.” Josh said the phrase did not initially fit the song it was suggested for, but stuck with him and Noah until they realized it was the perfect fit for another track, and eventually gave the whole record its name.
“I didn’t like the name for that particular song, but there was another song of mine that it was perfect for,” Josh said. “The more Noah and I said the name, we grew to like it more and more. We decided to name the whole album that. We need to track down that guy and thank him.”
Noah described the title track, which runs nearly eight minutes, as one of the album’s most ambitious pieces, built around a sweeping cello and string arrangement alongside guitar parts written by Josh. “A lot of the music on the album has the driving Latin flair,” Noah said. “Others are modern jazz. However, there’s a couple of them with this really big sense of space that the name fits.”
Beyond the title track, “Balcony of the World” showcases Roman Street’s range, pairing the band’s signature European-infused acoustic sound with modern jazz arrangements on tracks like “Rosemary Beach” and “Two Step,” along with a jazz-inflected cover of The Spinners’ classic “I’ll Be Around.” The album also marks a first for the band: the introduction of vocals into what has largely been an instrumental catalog. “Island Time” features vocalist Denise Small, a friend of longtime Roman Street collaborators Bryan Morris on drums and Joseph Morris Jr. on bass.
“That song has the first lyrics that I ever tried writing,” Noah said. “I’ve been a professional musician for 15 years, and we’ve been doing instrumental music the whole time. When that song came around, I always had some lyrics in mind, but my singing is absolutely horrible. Denise had worked with us on some private and corporate gigs. We liked her voice a lot. So, we wanted to get her in the studio.”
Noah said the band’s music continues to be shaped by the places its members have traveled, describing his songwriting as inspired by the sights and sensations of the far-flung locales Roman Street has performed in over the years, filtered through the lens of two brothers who grew up on the Alabama Gulf Coast.
“I have this eternal muse going on that gets kick-started while we’re traveling,” Noah said. “There’s also the people that you meet. We’ve met some extraordinary people in different parts of the world. It gets your imagination going trying to capture those memories and moods. We’re inspired by these exotic locations and trying to merge that through the lens of two boys who grew up here on the Alabama Gulf Coast.”
Noah said “Balcony of the World” was written without sheet music, favoring spontaneous creation in the studio alongside Josh, Morris and Morris Jr., and that he hopes that creative chemistry comes through for listeners. Even after ten years and six albums, Noah said the band’s approach hasn’t strayed far from where it started.
“Roman Street is still going strong,” Noah said. “We’re older now than the kids sitting on the sidewalk in Fairhope. For me, the approach is still the same. I’m just jamming with my brother and playing what moves us.”
Friday’s release show at the Halstead Amphitheater gives Baldwin County audiences a chance to hear the new album performed live in the band’s hometown before Roman Street takes “Balcony of the World” on the road.