Sunday, July 10, 2016
Saturday, July 9, 2016
Wooden Nickel Lottery - Down the Line
2016 – Violet Isle
Records
By Phillip Smith; July 9, 2016
There’s something kind of special
about Wooden Nickel Lottery’s latest
album, Down the Line. The songs take me back to the late Seventies, when
rock music relied on well-written songs, and radio stations still played a mix
of genres. That’s exactly what these Eastern
Iowa musicians have to offer, as they skillfully combine splashes of rock,
blues, country, funk and soul to create their own special blend of homegrown
tunes. The band is composed of lead vocalist/guitarist
Rick Gallo, guitarist/tunesmith Rich Toomsen, bassist Jessica Toomsen, and drummer Delayne Stallman.
Gallo soulfully
belts out “Can’t Be Wrong” with a power and smoothness which reminds me of Foreigner’s Lou Gramm. I dig the funky
bassline Jess lays down on “No
Second Chances”. It puts a smile on my
face with every listen. It’s easy to get
lost in the bluesy melody on “Yesterday’s Rain”. It’s nice and slow, with an Allman Brothers vibe. Hearing this one played live with an extended
jam would be a treat for sure. WNL kicks out the jams in hoedown
fashion for a downright bodacious and intense instrumental, “Throw It Down”. They keep the fire burning with the rocker “The
Open Road”, staying on course with a driving beat from Stallman as Rich sweetly
rips it up on guitar.
For a cool-as-hell finale, the
album closes out with a swampy homage to the working man in the track “Nickels
and Dimes”. Wooden Nickel Lottery scores big with Down the Line. It is such an
enjoyable album, I anxiously await their next.
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Steve Hill- Solo Recordings Volume 3
2016 – No Label Records
By Phillip Smith; July 6, 2016
It’s no surprise Canadian musician
Steve Hill has pulled down the 2015 JUNO Award for Blues Album of the Year, as well as Maple Blues Awards in 2014 and 2015 for Electric Act of the Year.
This man has it all going on with one of the best one-man band acts I’ve
heard. Hill attacks the blues with true grit as he pulls it all together
accomplishing a magnificent feat in every one of his performances. Solo
Recordings Volume 3 follows up his JUNO
nominated Solo Recordings Volume 1 and JUNO winning Solo Recordings
Volume 2. With Volume 3, Hill dishes up
a dozen magnificent songs which resonate deeper with each and every listen.
“Damned” breaks loose with a
wall of electric guitar fury alongside a driving beat. One song in and already it’s hard to imagine
this is one lone man with an arsenal of instruments. Hill
approaches “Still A Fool & A Rollin Stone” with intense focus, dishing out a
performance which sounds like it came from someone who has been playing fifty
years. He shines on guitar as well as
vocals, making this a no-holds-barred favorite. In “Troubled Times”, Hill shows off his versatility and reminds us that not everything
is pleasant. The song is beautifully
played. When Hill tackles one of my favorite blues tunes, “Rollin’ & Tumblin
/ Stop Breaking Down”, I go to my happy place as soon as I hear the slide. The man can sure play the blues. That is a fact.
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Albert Castiglia - Big Dog
2016 – Ruf Records
By Phillip Smith; June 25, 2016
I’ve always enjoyed hearing Albert Castiglia play the Blues, but there is something about his latest album, Big Dog, that grabs ahold of me and just latches on. Castiglia surrounds himself with extremely talented musicians: bassist Scot Sutherland, drummer Rob Lee, and Lewis Stephens on keys & piano. For the icing on the cake, Mike Zito also performs on guitar and produced the album as well.
Castiglia
enters the album guns-a-blazing, holding back nothing, lobbing immense and
intense guitar licks as if grenades on a battlefield, in the monster opening
track “Let the Big Dog Eat”. Castiglia advises promising musicians
that hard work is the key to success in the song, “Get Your Ass in the Van”. He lays down lots of sweet killer slide guitar
on this original track, while satirically making his point, singing “This ain’t
no American Idol. There ain’t no more deals
being made at the cross-roads.”. Castiglia
then goes deep on his four-star cover of Luther
Allison’s “Drowning at the Bottom”. I
can feel the blues oozing from his pores as he beautifully plays this soulful
tear-jerker. This is my absolute favorite.
Stephens’s organ performance adds
a cool Allman Brothers vibe on “Let’s
Make Love in the Morning”. This soulful,
feel-good song puts a smile on my face with every listen.
Big Dog is so
hot and electric; it is pretty much an instant classic.
Sunday, June 19, 2016
Voice of Cedar Lake live at Irish District Music and Arts Festival 6/18/16
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
By Phillip Smith; June 19,
2016
Blue skies and warm weather
set the perfect stage for a day of music and relaxation at the seventh annual
Irish District Music and Arts Festival, which took place on June 18th. The Voice
of Cedar Lake, composed of guitarist Craig
Erickson, vocalist Alicia Strong,
bassist John Hall, keyboardist Tom “T-Bone” Giblin, and drummer Jon
Wilson took the stage first, opening up for the great Eric Gales.
Erickson
kicked things off with one of my favorite songs from his Sky Train Galaxy album, “Mojo in Memphis”. Soon afterwards the band broke out the funk
and tore into a groovy performance of Rufus
and Chaka Kahn’s “Tell Me Something Good”.
Strong’s vocals were powerful
and perfect. Strong belted out more sweet and soulful vocals as the band doled
out a rousing cover of Buddy Mile’s “Them
Changes”. I loved the bluesy spin they
put on the Bob Marley classic “No
Woman No Cry”, as well as the clever mash-up with the Five Stairsteps’ 1970 top-ten hit “O-o-h Child”. Delbert
McClinton’s “Standing on Shaky Ground” was a real treat, highlighted by an
outstanding performance by Hall on
his seven string bass, and Giblin on
organ. Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” immediately followed, keeping the
groove afloat and the audience on cloud nine.
Watching these musicians in
action makes me proud to live in a community which not only has a wealth of
great talent, but through appreciation of live music, is able to retain these
talented artists we get so much enjoyment from.
All Photos by Phillip Smith
Craig Erickson |
Craig Erickson / John Hall |
John Hall |
Craig Erickson |
John Hall / Tom 'T-Bone' Giblin |
Alicia Strong |
Alicia Strong |
Jon Wilson |
Voice of Cedar Lake |
Alicia Strong |
Craig Erickson |
Craig Erickson / Alicia Strong |
John Hall |
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