TINSLEY ELLIS – LABOR OF LOVE: Album review
Alligator Records Labor Of Love finds Ellis circling back to the marrow of the music no frills, no polish, just wood, wire, and worn-in truth. Stripped of the studio sheen and big-band punch that coloured his recent work, this album stands as Ellis’s most soulful excavation of acoustic blues yet, raw, direct, and heavy with lived experience. It also marks […]
DUKE ROBILLARD – BLAST OFF: Album review
Nola Blue Records Duke Robillard has spent a lifetime immersed in the deep currents of American roots music, and his newest release, finds the veteran guitarist and blues historian sounding as vital and assured as ever. This is not an album concerned with reinvention or trend-hopping. Instead, Robillard leans fully into his strengths, delivering a richly played […]
ALBUM REVIEW: KIRK FLETCHER – KEEP ON PUSHING
Vizztone Alongside a career as a top sideman to the likes of Joe Bonamassa and Charlie Musselwhite, as well as stints with The Mannish Boys and The Fabulous Thunderbirds, Kirk Fletcher has been steadily releasing solo albums since 1999. Keep On Pushing is his eighth solo album and his most accomplished yet. He began recording it in […]
ALBUM REVIEW: THE ZAC SHULZE GANG – STRAIGHT TO IT
Ruf Records It’s hard to believe that The Zac Shulze Gang only came together five years ago in Gillingham, England. In that short space of time, the trio have stormed stages across the UK, Europe, and even America – a feat many bands never achieve in a lifetime. Now, with their debut album Straight To […]
V&BT Album Review
Scandinavia is a noted European blues-music hotspot; Sweden and Norway are particularly known for their love of the music and both have a thriving, enquiring and impressive blues pedigree. Here we have one of those unexpected and pleasant surprises with a Norwegian outfit that clearly knows and understands the tradition and the genre all too […]
CITIZEN JONES – DOWNTOWN WAYS (album review)
Bringing a not entirely new meaning to the term ‘stripped back, Citizen Jones is just two musicians – Daniel Jones on guitar, and Tim Douthit on harmonica. The band claim to bring, quote, ‘fresh power to the old-school front porch country blues’. Singing mostly original songs, with occasional classics in their live set so the […]
ALLY VENABLE – Money & Power album review
Ruf Records Ally Venable roars back onto the scene with her sixth studio release. A bold, electrifying statement, this cements her status as a blues-rock powerhouse, blending fierce guitar work with messages of strength and resilience, especially for women in a historically male-dominated genre. The album explodes to life with Brown Liquor, a swaggering opener […]
THE TOO BAD JIMS – OVER THE HILL
The Too Bad Jims are a three-piece band, Little Victor (Guitar and Vocals, Son Jack Jr (Guitar and Vocals, and Nick Simonen (Drums ). They have all played with many other musicians such as Hubert Sumlin, Charlie Musselwhite, and Chuck Berry. Getting together for the first time on this album was because of their shared […]
TOMMY CASTRO AND THE PAINKILLERS – CLOSER TO THE BONE
Closer To The Bone is the 8th album that Tommy Castro has recorded on the Alligator label. Reading the liner notes that accompanied the album, Castro says he wanted to make a 1005 Blues album. Well, I’m here to tell you, that he has done exactly that. Surrounding himself with a hoard of top-class musicians, […]
INNES SIBUN – THE PREACHER
As soon as I received a copy of this album, I knew that I would be in for a treat. I’ve been lucky enough to have seen Innes Siburn playing live a few times over the years. On top of that, Innes has played with some of the biggest names in Blues, Johnny Winter, Walter […]