Handsome Jack - Get Humble

Timeless American rock 'n' soul stew. No reinvention of the wheel but they sure can roll it!

It's a well trodden musical path but damn it still sound good. Handsome Jack are a trio based in Lockport NY whose music is an timeless amalgam of southern rock, soul, gospel, blues, R&B, with a little bit of funky country thrown in for good measure. Their latest album Get Humble was released last month by the always reliable label Alive Records. Gutsy locked-in grooves and raspy vocals are the order of the day, delivered with aplomb and conviction. The addition of harmony vocals, a touch of brass here and there and the party is good to go. It may only be rock and roll, but Handsome Jack avoid the trap many bands make – with these guys the emphasis is on the roll, not the rock. A massively important point here.

There are highlights aplenty - the slide guitar solo and tasty drum fills on 'High Class Man', the call and response vocal lines on 'Get Humble', the low bass rumble of 'New Home In The Sky'. It all makes for a compelling feelgood listen, one that's suere to bring a little bit of sunshine and warmth in these dark winter weeks. If the likes of The Black Crowes, The Allman Brothers Band, and the rootsier side of ZZ TOP are your bag, this will be too. Good times guaranteed.

Handsome Jack are:-

Jamison Passuite (guitar/vocals)

Joey Verdonselli (bass/vocals)

Bennie Hayes (drums/vocals)

Click here for Handsome Jack's website

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Datura4 - West Coast Highway Cosmic

 Australian boogie rockers head for the open road on their fourth LP.

You don't miss the water till the well runs dry. So goes the old adage. As we're all currently under lockdown, the idea of travel, heading out on to the open road for adventure, purposeful travel and general fun suddenly seems like a privilege from a lost era. Fitting then that my listening album of choice this week has been the newie by Australian rockers Datura4. West Coast Highway Cosmic is a celebration of travel, rendered in old school boogie blues rock. The kind of album that sounds best when played loud. What better way to annoy your neighbours!

I greatly enjoyed last year's Blessed Is The Boogie. This latest release follows on almost a year to the day, and represents an extension and expansion of the band's trademark boogie rock sound, in no small part due to the input of new members Bob Patient (keys) and Howie Smallman (harmonica). For a little history of the band and to find out what sparked bandleader Dom Mariani's love of rock music you can look back to my review for Blessed Is The Boogie.

West Coast Highway Cosmic finds our heroes stretching out musically building on their firm solid rock foundations. The opening title track begins with scene-setting Hammond chords and swooping Moog notes before the guitars and drums kick in to hurtle you off at high speed down the cosmic highway. The track was written in honour of the studios the band have used over the course of their recording career, situated 124 miles apart along the south western Australian coast.

'Wolfman Woogie' is a no-nonsense brooding blues rock track, enhanced by Smallman's harmonica. The in-the-pocket groove dropping away to leave space for Mariani's riffs. Also worth checking for its heavy Hammond solo and wah-wah guitar workout. In fact the whole record has guitar heroics that will have bedroom players the world over wide-eyed in wonderment. The cleverly layered parts perfected by Mariani over a lifetime playing shows around his home turf since his youth.

The new textures brought by new keyboardist Bob Patient allow the band to build on the sound of their previous outings, but make no mistake this is a rock record with a capital R, one informed by the heavy rock gods of the 1970s – Sabbath, Zep, Lizzy, Purple, ZZ Top. 'You're The Only One' takes the pace down a little, a low-key swampy blues number redolent of the Mississipi Delta. There are those that say rock is long dead. On the evidence here don't believe it.

Click here for Datura4 on Twitter.
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Click here for Alive Records.

Jesper Lindell – Everyday Dreams

A debut album packed with warm sentiments and timeless soul 'n' blues.

There are so many artists around today who take inspiration from the classic soul and blues era of the fifties and sixties that the vintage tag has become almost meaningless. Timeless would be a more apt description and one that fits well for this debut album by Sweden's Jesper Lindell. Full of that subtle sympathetic musicianship we've come to expect from Swedish musicians, Everyday Dreams is equal parts classic mid '60s Stax/Volt and gently rolling blues, with shades of Van Morrisson's Tupelo Honey and artists such as Leon Bridges, The Black Keys and Ray LaMontagne.

It's a record full of warm sentiments and soulful vocals. Lindell's blue-eyed soul voice that takes centre stage and carries the album from start to finish, equally at home on the uptempo numbers as it is on the album's softer, more intimate tracks. Lindell has obviously immersed himself in that great wealth of music that America has produced. Everyday Dreams draws from the deep well of soul, blues, country, folk and gospel. Admirably Lindell doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. There are no boundary-pushing production techniques or ill-advised genre mash-ups, just great songwriting, well-produced and great performances from all the musicians involved.

Perfect Sunday evening listening for these dark winter nights. Get your fire lit, crack open a bottle of something nice and kick back with your loved one with this album playing. As Lindell sings on 'France' - “I'll I wanna do is spend my time drinking wine with you.” What could be better.

Click here Jesper Lindell's website.

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Click here for Alive Records.

GospelbeacH - Let It Burn

Elegiac American beauty.

Oh man. Where do I start with this with this one? Just a few short days after the review copy of this album had dropped through the letterbox came the news that guitarist Neal Casal had passed away. The guy was 50 years old. I never knew him of course but as is the way with musicians they have a mysterious effect on your inner life. It's subtle, mysterious, hard to pin down, but at the same time very real and valuable. I first heard his work on the records he made with Ryan Adams and the Cardinals and it was clear from those classic albums that he was a man of taste. Always serving the song, enhancing its message and bringing out each track's emotional heart. It's a style of playing that he brought to each project he worked on, whether with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood or GospelbeacH on their latest album Let It Burn, which turned out to be Casal's last recorded work. Listening with that knowledge gives the album an unintentional elegiac quality, but such is the strength of the songs, its emotional resonance would still be present had the circumstances been different.

It's the third album from the band . Their previous record, Another Summer Of Love, which came out in 2017, had a slight Anglophilic bent, even borrowing lyrics from The Jam. Aside from a reference to Winston Churchill on 'I'm So High' and the early '70s Bowie vibe on 'Unswung', Let It Burn is firmly rooted in Americana. Its mood is a winning blend of downbeat and defiant, in a way a reflection or snapshot of modern America itself. All the songs were written by vocalist/guitarist Brent Rademaker with drummer/vocalist Trevor Beld Jiminez. They deal with personal darkness but not in a forced or laboured way. There's a freshness and spontaneity to them. Ditto the arrangements - plenty of vocal harmonies and tight playing but with enough space for the songs to breath. A cliché perhaps to say it but to my ears it's the band's best album thus far, and one with a touch of Zen about it. High and low emotions are felt, then let go in order for the next ones to come. Not a bad way to live let alone make records. Apologies to anyone who's read this expecting a standard review format. No scrub that, no apologies, this one is for Neal. Thanks for the music and rest easy.

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Click here for Alive Records.

Datura4 – Blessed Is The Boogie

West Aussie rockers get deep down in the groove on their third long-player.


“Who are your main musical influences?” - It's a simple question to ask but a truly honest answer would offer much more than just a list of famous bands. It's a point made in Joe Jackson's autobiography A Cure For Gravity, where he says his biggest influences were the people he spent time making music with in his early pre-fame bands – players who may not be famous names but were in a position to offer insights about technique and taste, about how to play sympathetically, and about band dynamics.

I was reminded about this when reading the press release for this third album from Datura4, where bandleader Dom Mariani pays homage to the local bands and musicians he grew up hearing in the pubs and clubs of Perth and Freemantle on Australia's west coast during the 1970s. Bands such as The Aztecs, The Coloured Balls, Sitting Bull, The Master Apprentices, Daddy Cool and Carson. Household names they may not be, but they must have been pretty special to have inspired Mariani's lifelong dedication to making kick-ass rock.

Blessed Is The Boogie is Datura4's third album, following Hairy Mountain (2016) and Demon Blues (2015). It's an album that will appeal to those who like their music to be heavy, but not at the expense of tunes or funk-filled grooves. Taking the foundations like by boogie godfathers such as John Lee Hooker and cranking the amps up to eleven, Datura4's sound has all the hallmarks of classic heavy rock – twin lead guitar lines, a hard-working rhythm section laying down chunky solid riffs and beats. Throw in the heavy textured chords of a Hammond B3 organ, and right there you have some serious sonic chemistry going on.

Aside from the no-nonsense boogie rock alluded to in the album title we also find polished and sentimental FM rock on 'Not For Me', along with a nod to their musical roots with a cover of R&B classic 'Oop Poo Pah Doo', a song written by Jesse Hill in 1960, later covered by the likes of Ike and Tina Turner, Wilson Pickett and garage bands such as The Standells and The Kingsmen.

An interesting twist and side story to this album is that Mariani now owns the black 1969 Les Paul guitar previously owned by Sitting Bull's now sadly-departed guitarist Paul Fulton. The guitar was used throughout the album. Funny how things come full circle , it's a nice story and fitting dedication to Mariani's primary influences. And the guitar is in safe hands - Mariani knows how to play it, drenching this record with pure-toned guitar solos throughout.

In rock music terms Blessed Is The Boogie has a sound as old as the hills but hey, it still sounds great to me. Tags such as retro or contemporary are rendered meaningless when you crank up the volume of your stereo and tune in to the tunes, and nuanced songwriting. For those who like their rock heavy and deep grooved. Good work fellas.


Click here for Datura4 on Twitter.
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Click here for Alive Records.

Buffalo Killers - Alive And Well In Ohio

(This review first appeared in issue #73 of Shindig! magazine.)

Alive CD / LP

Always one of the more astute bands on the Alive roster. Buffalo Killers may be long of hair, full of beard, and stacked of amps, but they're not afraid to get in touch with their soulful, nuanced side. Beefed-up country rock with a chunk of funk thrown in, brotherly harmonies and a musicality not often found in a rock outfit makes this album a delight. Think Crazy Horse armed with diminished and augmented chords.

Incredibly this is the band's eighth LP and they show no sign of letting up with ideas and inspired moments. Take for example the leftfield guitar solo and Curtis Mayfield-esque falsetto on 'Parachute', the high-to-low vocal descent on the last line of the chorus in 'Death Magic Cookie', and the pedal-steel embellishments by (new-ish) member Sven Kahns. There's also enough riffage and grunge to keep the rockers happy. Not only alive and well, they're positively thriving.

GospelbeacH - Another Summer Of Love

(This review first appeared in issue #68 of Shindig! magazine.)

Alive CD/LP

Whether 2017 yields a season of goodwill remains to be seen. This follow up to GospelbeacH's 2015's debut Pacific Surf Line can only help it happen. Its ten tracks of lush, cosmic Americana could only have been made on America's west coast, so the opening lyric cheekily borrowed from The Jam (“In the desert there's a thousand things I want to say to you”) is a neat attention grabber. You know you're listening to a band with serious pop-nous.

GospelBeacH's sound recalls Tom Petty's mix of roots rock and new-wave, along with the grown-up country rock of Chuck Prophet. Though recognising they may be peddling an idealised version of the Golden Sate their take on Cali-rock is seductive – catchy tunes, tasteful song-serving guitar solos and accomplished musicianship that doesn't stray into session-player blandness. Not one for neophiles, but those of us who value quality can bask in its revitalising sun-drenched goodness.

Heath Green & The Makeshifters - Heath Green & The Makeshifters

 (This review first appeared in issue #65 of Shindig! magazine.)

Alive Natural Sound CD / LP

Heath Green possesses a voice that's not only lived-in, it may also have hosted a fair share of all-night house parties. Gritty, gravelly and full of that good ol' southern soul, the man sure as hell can sing! Based in Birmingham, Alabama, he's been the city's best-kept musical secret for the last two decades. He and his killer band make a fiery hybrid of soul, blues, rock and gospel, breathing new life into the region's musical heritage and traditions.

Alternating between Saturday night revelry and Sunday morning redemption with the trials of grown-up relationships thrown in, this earthy, blue-eyed and blue-collar soul recalls Jerry Lee Lewis, Otis Redding, The Faces, Joe Cocker and The Black Crowes yet is beholden to none. Equally adapt at guttural howls and soulful sophistication, quite why Mr. Green has not broken through to wider recognition is a mystery. With this album his dues must surely come.

Click here for Heath Green & The Makeshifters' website.

The Bloodhounds - Let Loose! (OUT NOW!)

One for the greasers! Skiffle, beat, dirty rock 'n' roll, & hubcap blues feature on the debut LP by LA's Bloodhounds.

An groovy album that may came out towards the end of last year was Let Loose by LA's rock 'n' skifflers The Bloodhounds. With a nose for stripped-back bluesy rock 'n' roll, honed while busking on the sidewalks of downtown LA, the band have been helped in the studio by producer Arthur Alexander (The Poppees, Sorrows). The resulting album captures that street energy and adds some extra sonic punch.

Anyone lucky enough to have witnessed their impromptu busking gigs must surely have had a real treat. You can imagine this band whipping up a storm, on one hand they're a high octane jug band, on the other a punked up blues 'n' beat outfit. The music is a stripped-back, energetic romp, fuelled by spirit and enthusiasm more than technical ability, and all the better for that.

As well as the classic two guitars, bass and drums set up, The Bloodhounds make the most of cheap instruments and household objects. Washboards, banjos and kazoos sit happily in the mix. With a sound roooted in '60s rhythm and blues there's also a hint of punk. The overall effect is akin to Joey Ramone fronting The Pretty Things.

The Wolf pays homage to bluesman Howlin' Wolf, with guitar parts based around Hubert Sumlin's Spoonful guitar lick. Elsewhere there's echoes of Star Club era Beatles, Lonnie Donegan, early Stones and the afore-mentioned Pretty Things.

The band are something of an anomaly in today's pro-tools era, and go against the grain of modern polished pop, but those of us in search of the true spirit of rock 'n' roll will dig it!

The Bloodhounds are -

Aaron “Little Rock” Piedraita – rhythm guitar/vocals

Johnny Santana – bass/banjo/harp/vocals

Branden Santos – lead guitar/harp/vocals

Mark Schafler – drums/washboard/percussion/harp/kazoo/vocals

Click here for more on The Bloodhounds.

Handsome Jack - Do What Comes Naturally

The latest torch carriers for gritty, soulful blues release their debut LP.

The Blues is a wheel that keeps on turning, a gift that keeps on giving. The recent popularity of The White Stripes, The Black Keys, Seasick Steve et al, have made the blues newly accessible to mainstream ears. Unlike jazz it seems to have avoided becoming a dead form, ironically by not changing that much. The same three chords, same subject matter and same delivery have served it pretty well.

The latest band to breathe new life into this old form is Handsome Jack, a quartet from Buffalo, NY. Their debut album Do What Comes Naturally doesn't serve up anything particularly revolutionary but as the title suggests they make music that feels right, and feels good, from the blue-eyed soul burr of the vocals to the in-the-pocket funky rhythm section.

Unlike the White Stripes' punked-up take on the blues, or the Black Keys indie-funk makeover, Handsome Jack have opted for a more organic blues/soul reunification, one with it's roots in the deep southern states of Mississippi and Tennessee as opposed to the NY zip-code that Handsome Jack call home.

Much like the LPs Albert King made for Stax Records, the music here is laid-back, groove-laden and soulful. The band's roots in garage rock are betrayed by the record's bourbon-soaked rawness, but it's a blues record at heart, albeit one that owes as much to '70s funk and late '60s blues rockers Canned Heat as it does to the electrified Chicago blues of John Lee, Muddy and Wolf.

Produced by Zachary Gabbard of label-mates The Buffalo Killers, the record essentially captures the band's live sound with some subtle additions - sumptuous Hammond organ (courtesy of The Lemon Pipers' Bob Nave), the occasional harmonica solo, and some Sweet Inspirations-esque backing vocals. Do What Comes Naturally is a fine addition to the contemporary blues cannon and a disc that'll nicely soundtrack any blues house party.

Click here for more on Handsome Jack.

Paul Collins - Feel The Noise

The heart of rock 'n' roll is still beating! The power pop guru returns with a celebration of the simple things in life.

Girls, guitars and rock 'n' roll – a simple enough recipe for happiness that's endured through the decades ever since Chuck, Buddy, Jerry Lee, Elvis and Little Richard laid down the template. Music may have mutated over the intervening years but those roots are as strong as ever. Paul Collins' latest long-player is an unashamed celebration of all these rock 'n' roll touchstones; the pleasure of beat music, new love, and cranking up the volume of your favourite slabs of vinyl. As a founding member of The Nerves Collins' reputation as one of power pop's key movers is assured. It's further cemented by this latest platter. Recorded by legendary Detroit producer Jim Diamond (who also plays guitar, bass and provides backing vocals and percussion), it's a punchy, melodic affair with a strong transatlantic thread, part British invasion, part US garage.

With A Girl Like You is not the Troggs' song of the same name but does tip its hat to British shores with its distinct Merseybeat flavour, whereas Baby I'm I'm Love With You resurrects and punks-up the sound of Buddy Holly & The Crickets. Detroit's musical heritage gets a look in with a cover of The Four Tops' Reach Out I'll Be There, its soulful longing supplemented with guitar band urgency. Album closer Walk Away further underlines this soul/guitar crossover, taking doo-wop as its basis. It would make an emotive track for a teen-movie credit roll should any Hollywood producers be reading this. Paul Collins will be on tour in the States later this month and throughout October. Get along to a gig and Feel The Noise! If you can't make a gig get this record instead. It won't disappoint.

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Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires – There Is A Bomb In Gilead

From the heart of Dixie, mixing southern rock, garage, country, soul and gospel in some righteous ragged songs.

There are certain record labels you can trust, such as Alive Natural Sounds. They've been releasing consistently good music for the best part of twenty years, usually by bands that make gritty yet accessible rock that has one foot in the past, yet also manages to point a way forward. They also have a good take on how to release them. As well as CD and digital formats they also do limited bespoke runs of coloured vinyl for most of their releases.

The latest band to get their break courtesy of Alive Natural Sound is Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires with their debut album There Is A Bomb In Gilead. (The title comes from Bains mishearing a hymn as a child, mistaking the word balm for bomb). Though there's nothing particularly new or ground breaking about this album, the mix of southern rock, garage, country, soul and gospel makes for an infectious brew. Sung and played with infectious fervour. It's not a million miles away from the music made by their old touring buddies Alabama Shakes.

The band's music is firmly rooted in the deep south, Bains having formed the band in Birmingham, Alabama, returning there after a spell at college in New York. After a few listens to the album, Bains' knack for storytelling and scene setting begins to shine through. Unlike a lot of more famous song writers he has something to say and he says it well, with a skilful turn of phrase. You get the impression he's one of life's good guys, like a more punky Bruce Springsteen. Take a listen to Righteous Ragged Songs and you'll see what I mean. “Say a prayer for punk rock and a prayer for me” sings Bains. With pleasure sir, 'tis done.

Click here for Lee Bains III & The Glory Fires' website.

Buffalo Killers - Dig. Sow. Love. Grow.

It's less than a year ago since I reviewed Buffalo Killers' previous album 3 for Subba Cultcha, (I'll put a link here soon when the relaunched site is back up and running), it's great to see that the band's creativity shows no signs of letting up. Their recently released fourth album Dig. Sow. Love. Grow. is an extension of where the band were at on their last album – earthy country rock, dripping with Zachary and Andrew Gabbard's vocal harmonies. This time round there are some heavier moments creeping in, as on album opener Get It with its 70s guitar riffage and one-note Stooges style piano. While not quite into metallic zones it does represent the heavier end of the blues rock spectrum.

For the most part though the clue is in the album's title – earthy, organic, hippy love vibes are in the area. The album sounds like Harvest would have had Neil Young decided to record said record with an electric band. It's electric, and rock 'n' roll, but shot through with some down home warmth. While it lacks a killer track on a par with 3's Huma Bird, there's still rich pickings here. Their take on southern rock ticks all the right boxes – grooves, songs and great harmony singing all present and correct. And man, as for those guitar tones and solos! Dig it indeed!

 Click over the jump for a video for Buffalo Killers' track Get It.