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Blues Music Blog & Promotion

Unknown River set the bar for honkytonk hits plateau-high with ‘Outlaws on My Trail’

Posted on 6 September 2023

The Floridan singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Unknown River set the bar for penning immersive escapist honkytonk hits plateau-high with the standout single, Outlaws on My Trail, taken from his debut album, The Dead River Passage.

The fiddle and banjo-driven single delivers a vignette of a man coming to regret the repercussions of his down-and-out actions; the combination of the simple country living exposition and the upbeat arrangement and vocals is enough to make the experience of outlaw-evading sound like a riotous way to see the sands of time slip away, and therein lies the beauty of Unknown River’s indomitable magnetism.

By taking the influence of bluegrass, delta blues, country, rock and old-timey traditional tunes, Unknown River’s amalgamated Americana signature is designed to strip away the plight of modern-day malaise and entrench you in the ease and euphoria of eras that are far from bygone – roots-crafted sanctuaries are just one hit on play away. Press it.

Outlaws on My Trail is available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The blues rock renegade Chance Brown supercharged the airwaves with his electrifying single, Come See ‘Bout Me

Posted on 26 August 2023

The Victoria BC roots rock renegade Chance Brown delivered a bluesy bluegrass invitation you won’t want to turn down with his latest single, Come See ‘Bout Me.

Don’t let the acoustic guitar-wielding cover art fool you. Come See ‘Bout Me is more electrifying than anything Jack White has crafted in his entire career and just as rich in mainstream appeal thanks to the garage rock infusion. The track is so much more than a live wire, it is more reactive than the Chernobyl power plant at the point of explosion.

Between the harmonica blasts, the lap steel tones and the tightly controlled chaos of the choruses, Chance Brown succeeded in paying homage to the traditions of blues and ensuring that those aural traditions have a place in the contemporary music industry.

After spending his life in unwavering devotion to honing the different elements of song-crafting, Chance Brown has polished his talents and maintained his passion, initially ignited by the likes of Justin Townes Earle and Gord Downie, enabling him to become one of the most scintillating raconteurs of truths in any town.

Come See ‘Bout Me was officially released on the 18th of August; stream it on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Tom Rogers resurrected psych blues in his single, Rise Again

Posted on 16 August 2023

From the first nostalgic note in the debut single, Rise Again, from Tom Rogers, you will bask and revel in the Beatles and the Doors reminiscences and find something brand-new in Rogers’ reggae, blues, folk and psych amalgam.

While the groove-pocketed rhythms take a firm grip of your rhythmic pulses, the kaleidoscopic tones abstract you from the 21st century as the visceral with bluesy soul vocals light a fire under the vintage production.

With Pawala Ariyathilaka on lead guitar, Will Fraser on Drums, Dan Wakeling on bass, and Steve Burholt on keys, Tom Rogers and his backing band delivered a superlative slice of psychedelic blues rock reverence that will allow you to slip back in time and across the Atlantic. They didn’t reinvent the wheel with Rise Again, which carries a flood of second-coming redemption, but the way they gave you a ticket back to the 70s era of blues rock via a route never taken is something to celebrate. If you’ve got the Black Keys and The Black Rebel Motorcycle Club on your radar, you have room for Tom Rogers on your playlists.

Rise Again was officially released on August 4th; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Pick up Propter Hawk’s seminal blues rock release, Telephone

Posted on 5 August 2023

Fill up your whiskey glass and pick up the seminal single, Telephone, from Propter Hawk – if you can lift the heavy with swaggering rock n roll riffs, that is.

As a born rock frontwoman, Malorie Blake on lead vocals knows just how to pay homage to bluesy overdriven rock with her authentically Americana high-octane vocal lines which effortlessly gel with the if-they’d-be-any-tighter-they’d-be-claustrophobic instrumentals as they weave through eras and genres with ease.

With influence from The Beatles, The Band, and Otis Redding feeding into their amalgamated free bird sonic signature, you’ve never encountered an outfit quite like Propter Hawk before, nor are you ever likely to with their commitment to authenticity and their devilishly distinctive use of distortion on their vintage gear.

If you’re desperate to hear more after Telephone, you only have two weeks to wait before the release to wait before the official launch of the debut eponymous LP, which is due for release on August 18th.

Telephone is available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify. 

For more info on Propter Hawk, check out their official website. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The 1930s Hot Club Jazz Scene is in Full Swing Once More in Bowmanville’s Seminal Single, Annie & Me

Posted on 3 August 2023

Almost 100 years stand between today and the Parisian 1930s Hot Club Jazz scene; listening to the raconteurs of sonic nostalgia, Bowmanville, you would be forgiven for thinking that it was only yesterday when beatniks with affinities for wild time signatures, swinging grooves and foot-tapping beats crowded clubs and started a movement that will never be lost to history.

Especially on the basis of the Chicago-hailing outfit’s swinging, smoky rhythmic drive and cinematically vibrant fusion of Jazz and Blues in Annie & Me, taken from their eponymous debut LP, produced by none other than the Grammy-nominated producer Doug Nelson.

Violinist Ethan Adelsman, harmonicist and vocalist Graham Nelson, percussionist Noah Plotkin, bassist Oliver Horton and guitarist Mason Jiller on guitar know just how to synergistically spill baroque alchemy as they blaze through the progressions in the instrumental score, which gives each pays ode to Chicago blues and the unmistakable timbres of Parisian Jazz.

Annie & Me is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Cornish brother duo, Roguey Roads, served a fresh slice of Americana indie pop with Westwood Sands

Posted on 29 June 2023

Roguey Roads carved a fresh slice of Americana indie pop for their latest single, Westwood Sands, which fuses country vox with an angular melodicism that will make any indie fan nostalgic for the 90s and 00s.

Following their debut album, Something to Prove, in 2021, Westwood Sands is a testament to how honed the Cornish indie pop duo’s sound has become. The songwriting, in particular, has been elevated to the nth degree.

After the winding bluesy guitars in the intro, momentum progressively builds in the immersive vignette of a wanderlust-driven protagonist who embarks on a journey of the soul and finds it filled by another. Hollywood directors would be hard-pressed to achieve the same panoramic picture in their feature films as Roguey Roads did in Westwood Sands.

It’s a heart-rendering indie pop anthem which goes a long way in proving why the brother duo can’t seem to create much distance between the ‘loveable’ adjective that is always affixed to them.

Westwood Sands is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Palace became heirs to the rock n roll dynasty in ‘Looking at You’

Posted on 24 June 2023

Just as royal blood ran in the veins of Prince and Queen, The Palace is just as imposingly majestic in their debut album, Rainbow Shades, which hit all major streaming platforms on June 9th.

The standout single, Looking at You, is a rapturous riot of Broadway-esque blues rock, with the shimmering Organ keys aiding the transcendence of the experience around the bluesy piano glissandos and the reverent rock electric guitar solos.

Star quality emanates from the natural charisma of the frontman, who utilises his soulfully profound dynamic vocal range to bring this stellar slice of rock n roll to visceral life. If your rock playlists are lacking serotonin, give them a potent fix by making Looking at You a staple.

To launch their debut LP, The Palace performed on the main stage at Indy Pride Festival, following a series of performances to capacity crowds throughout independent venues in Indianapolis.

Stream Looking at You on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Freaky Friday Jailhouse Gang filled groove pockets with raucous rock licks in ‘Benign Lion’

Posted on 23 May 2023

As you can probably gather from their moniker, The Freaky Friday Jailhouse Gang is far from your average RnB ensemble. Their seminal single, Benign Lion, is a riot of funk and foot-stompin flavour, driven by the fiery vocal lines of Lorena Valta.

Valta knows just how to instil raucous rock elements into the groove pockets that are deep enough to leave the Grand Canyon green with cavernous envy. Adding to the eccentricity of the Austrian outfit are the layers of blues, which pay homage to the roots before embedding them in an amalgam that could only have been alchemised by The Freaky Friday Jailhouse Gang.

The serious superlative talent is one thing, but the evident fact that the powerhouse, which has kept the cogs turning since the early 2010s, doesn’t take themselves too seriously is quite another. There’s an undeniable sense that the Gang benefit from their feel-good euphonics as much as their fans.

Benign Lion is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Fretbenders – Wandering Soul: An Americana Beacon for Wanderlust Dreamers to Follow Home

Posted on 11 May 2023

Taking you simultaneously to a veranda in Sicily and a back porch in Louisiana, the soundscape in the standout single, Wandering Soul, from the singer-songwriter duo The Fretbender’s seminal album, Long Overdue, is a beacon for the wanderlust dreamers to follow home.

Between the harmonicas, slide guitars and folksy vocal lines which sugar the atmosphere with compassion for the world-weary to savour, Wandering Soul is a timeless rootsy Americana offering which will nestle you within its euphonic comfort.

The husband-and-wife duo, Diane and Bob Kordas are known for their homely senses of soul and their unique roots infusions, which allow heritage sounds to resound on contemporary airwaves. Following their hotly anticipated LP, we hope there’s plenty more in the pipeline.

Wandering Soul is available to stream via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Just Like Honey: Maya’s Radio Orchestra Let the Light in with her jazz blues rendezvous, Suntrap

Posted on 3 May 2023
https://soundcloud.com/mayasradioorchestra/suntrap/s-SzD5YkM1Cav?si=bb9f31ab5e3446218e53aa0d7eb231ce&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

Maya’s Radio Orchestra brought sun-bleached luminosity by the smorgasbord with her latest baroquely beguiling single, Suntrap. Just as the sun illuminates dust when it hits a room, the radiance in Suntrap through the honeyed vocals and swirling harps suspend the dusty underground jazz bars while the piano arrangement underpins the warm arrangement; contributed to by producer Lauren Gilmour’s scintillating synth lines. With the dreamy and lofty drum fills bringing a lemon slice of Portishead-reminiscent glamour, Suntrap becomes a sonic plateau that you will want to visit time and time again.

Maya says: “When I wrote this song, it was the end of February, and the midst of a very long dark, damp, Glasgow winter, and I was feeling very down. We underestimate how difficult the winter in Scotland can be, all whilst having to continue with our day-to-day lives as if we’re not affected by nature and the lack of sunlight.

Writing this song was my way of processing this uncomfortable realisation that capitalism and the need for productivity are incompatible with our human nature and that it’s having a detrimental effect on our communal mental health.”

Maya is a Glasgow-based British-Nepali singer-songwriter, harpist, pianist and vocalist. She is highly revered for her texturally intricate harmonies, which cathartically coalesce with her classy instrumentation and lyricality that unravels as conceptually philosophical poetry.

The sun will hit the airwaves on May 3rd. Stream Suntrap on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast