Hazmat Modine plays the kind of Blues one might have found in a whorehouse in New Orleans had the city been built on the Black Sea somewhere alongside Macao and inhabited by Gypsies. Drawing from the rich soil of American music of the 20's and 30's through to the 50's and early 60's, blending elements of early Blues, Hokum Jugband, Swing, Klezmer, NO R&B, and Jamaican Rocksteady, the band is driven by a pair of dueling Harmonicas, backed by Tuba, Drums, Guitars, and Trumpet with the addition of special guests playing exotic instruments such as the Claviola, the Cymbalum or the Chinese mouth-organ, the Bass Sax and the Normaphone. Frontman Wade Schuman, has the appropriately throaty voice of someone who has both hopped freight trains and collaborated with the Throat Singers of Tuva. In addition to his own material the band cover tunes by Slim Gaillard, Jimmy Rogers, Jaybird Coleman, and Irving Berlin.

For those who have seen The Sway Machinery in action, little explanation is needed. The band's combination of rhythmic power and potent folklore takes no prisoners. On stage the energy of submerged worlds is torn out into the light of day. And indeed, the historical tradition of Cantorial music, which is the focus of the band's work, is very much a lost world. The music of The Sway Machinery invites the listener to become like children wandering in the forest, discovering something mythic and wonderful.

In January of 2010, The Sway Machinery traveled to Mali to perform at the legendary Festival of the Desert. While in Africa, the group recorded a new album featuring collaborations with luminaries of Malian music, including Vieux Farka Toure and Khaira Arby. The album that resulted from this remarkable intersection of worlds is called The House of Friendly Ghosts, and came out on JDub in March of 2011. The band has toured nationally and in Europe in support of the album, including numerous appearances with
Khaira Arby.