Due to the current global health crisis as well as travel and performance restrictions the following shows have been postponed or canceled:

March 16 Flying Buffaloes - new date Aug 5
March 18 Ward Davis - new date June 7
March 19 The Nielsen Trust - new Dec 12
March 20 Jeffrey Gaines - new date July 19
March 21 No Quarter - new date Nov 6
March 25 Joe Louis Walker - new date Aug 27
March 27 Koch Marshall Trio - new date Dec 5
March 28 Brand X - new date Sept 20
April 1 Tinsley Ellis - new date Sept 30
April 3 Diver Down, NightSnake - new date Aug 8
April 4 Jagged Little Pill, etc - new date Oct 30
April 8 Shawn Mullins - new date TBA
April 10 The Lovin' Kind, etc - new date Fall TBA
April 17 Altered 5 Blues Band - new date Oct 9
April 18 Benjamin Trick - new date Jan 16, 2021
April 19 The Mighty Pines - new date TBA
April 21 Yak Attack - new date Sept 29
April 23 Jazz is Phsh - new date July 29
April 24 Frank Marino - new date Sept 28
April 25 New Wave Fest - new date June 12
April 29 The Minks - new date Aug 13
April 30 24-7 Spyz - new date July 21
May 1 Pundamonium - new date Aug 9
May 4 Cold - new date Oct 31
May 7 Moonshine Bandits - new date Sept 11
May 8 Cowboy Mouth - new date July 24
May 9 Super-Unknown, etc - new date Oct 10
May 14 Stu Larsen - new date 2021 TBA
May 15 Katie Toupin - new date TBA
May 16 Monochrome Set - new date Sept 5
May 22 Stay Outside - new date TBA
May 23 Cloud Zero - new date TBA

March 30 Talisk is canceled
April 2 The Claudettes is canceled
April 11 Jay Anderson is canceled
May 3 Pierre Bensusan is canceled
May 2 Wayne Baker Brooks is canceled
May 27 Jesus Jones is canceled
May 31 Andrew Rivers is canceled
June 13 Bettye LaVette is canceled

Previously purchased tickets will be honored for new event dates.

Upcoming Shows

Steve Hofstetter

FridayMay 29, 20208:00pm $20.00

James Lee Stanley

WednesdayJune 3, 20208:00pm $15.00

James Lee Stanley became known to Monkees fans in the mid-'90s when the Two Man Band album was released, a project involving him and ex-Monkee Peter Tork. Born in Philadelphia on April 30, 1946, Stanley first met Tork at a Virginia club in 1963 and moved to New York City four years later, becoming involved in the city's....

Steve Forbert, Dana Erlandson NEW DATE

ThursdayJune 4, 20208:00pm $25.00

Recently Added Shows

Mutlu

SaturdayJune 6, 20208:00pm $12 advance / $15 door

The Get Happy!! (Elvis Costello tribute)

FridayJune 19, 20208:00pm $10.00

THE GET HAPPY!! brings all the punch and attitude to the deep, deep songbook of Elvis Costello and the Attractions.With an emphasis on the early classics, we continue to expand our setlist to travel far into the 40 year vault of gems from Elvis and the lads. Overlooked masterpieces, deep cuts and Elvis-approved covers can....

Chris Duarte Group

SaturdayJune 20, 20208:00pm $20.00

To classify Chris Duarte simply as a Blues Man is an understatement. In his own words, "rockin' blues" or "punk blues" describes him best. "Ferocious blues" also fits. Legend has it that Chris will play so hard that his fingers bleed in a set. The legend is true. Photos attest. Chris Duarte is a road warrior....

The Appalachians, Bad Year

SaturdayJuly 25, 20208:00pm $15.00

Milwaukee's beloved rock act The Appalachians have ended officially ended their six-year hiatus returning to the Milwaukee music scene in 2020. While frontman Adam Sutkiewicz was in recovery after a major Cancer Surgery, he reached out to Ryan Claxton, Adam Plew, and former guitar Jake Wachal in hopes to reunite the group....

Indigenous

FridayAugust 21, 20208:00pm $15.00

Jackie Venson

SaturdayAugust 22, 20208:00pm $15.00

Obsessed with music from an early age, singer/songwriter Jackie Venson immersed herself in its study, attending the Berklee College of Music to practice classical piano. However, it wasn't until she switched to the electric guitar, that her long-simmering passion for emotive live performance was realized. Abandoning the....

Church of Cash (Johnny Cash Tribute)

FridayOctober 2, 20208:00pm $15.00

Whether you are an 'ol timer that grew up listening to Mr. Cash in your tractor or a young soldier driving your tank across the deserts of the Middle East with the Man in Black in your headphones, the Church of Cash will bring his music, with style and energy to fans everywhere. What the Church of Cash has that no one....

Seaside Zoo (Grateful Dead Tribute)

SaturdayOctober 17, 20208:00pm $10.00

Seaside Zoo is a Madison, WI tribute to the Grateful Dead. We're comprised of longtime Madison musicians Jonas Pritzl, Tim and Sheryl Hall, and Rob Bloch (formerly of New Speedway Players) with the fresh new twist of Kyle O'Hara and Lucas Trilling (of The Bellybutton Club) and Zach Watson from Milwaukee. The communal....

Cold, University Drive NEW DATE

SaturdayOctober 31, 20208:00pm $20.00

Dead Letter Office (R.E.M. Tribute), Without U2 (U2 tribute)

SaturdayNovember 7, 20208:00pm $20.00

Dead Letter Office has dedicated themselves to faithfully reproducing the music and energy of a live R.E.M. show. Since 2014, Dead Letter Office has been thrilling audiences throughout the U.S. & Canada, providing a show....

The R&B Cadets

FridayNovember 27, 20208:00pm $20.00

The R&B Cadets

SaturdayNovember 28, 20208:00pm $20.00

Take It Easy (Eagles tribute)

FridayDecember 11, 20208:00pm $15 advance / $20 door

Paying homage to one of the best country rock bands of all time, Take It Easy performs hit after chart topping hit from the vast catalog of music created by the Eagles. From their debut Witchy Woman to their climactic #1 Hotel California. Take It Easy has the bases covered. Touching on the solo careers of each individual....

Alternative Concert Group Presents

~~Todd Snider~~ POSTPONED

TodayApril 9, 20207:30pm $30.00

At the Barrymore Theatre, Madison, WI.

Tickets on sale at barrymorelive.com or by phone at 608-241-8633 (Mon-Fri noon-5pm).

~~Asleep at The Wheel~~ CANCELED

~~SaturdayMay 9, 20208:00pm $48 / $41~~

If you already have tickets for this show, please return them to the place of purchase for a refund. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Violent Femmes with special guest X

FridayMay 29, 20208:00pm $55 / $45

At The Riverside Theater, Milwaukee, WI.

Tickets on sale online, by calling 414-286-3663 or at the Riverside or Pabst box offices during normal operating hours.

Gaelic Storm NEW DATE

WednesdayJuly 29, 20207:30pm $40.00

At The Grand, Oshkosh, WI.

Tickets on sale at thegrandoshkosh.org, 920-424-2350 or at The Grand box office Monday-Friday 11:30am-5:00pm, Saturday 11:00am-2:00pm.

Gaelic Storm NEW DATE

FridayAugust 28, 20207:30pm $42 / $32

At the Pablo Center for the Arts, Eau Claire, WI.

Tickets on sale at pablocenter.org.

Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds

FridaySeptember 18, 20208:30pm

At the Miller High Life Theatre, Milwaukee, WI.

Tickets on sale at Ticketmaster.com or the Miller High Life Theatre box office (10am - 5pm Monday - Friday).

Steven Wright

FridayOctober 2, 20208:00pm $48 / $38

At South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center, Milwaukee, WI.

Tickets on sale online, at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center box office or by phone at 414-766-5049.

Steven Wright

SaturdayOctober 3, 20208:00pm $50 / $40

At the Barrymore Theatre, Madison, WI.

Tickets on sale at barrymorelive.com, or by phone at 608-241-8633 (Mon-Fri noon-5pm).

George Winston NEW DATE

TuesdayOctober 13, 20207:00pm $40.00

At Meyer Theatre, Green Bay, WI

Tickets on sale at meyertheatre.org, the Resch Center box office, online at ticketstaronline.com or by calling 800-895-0071.

Leo Kottke NEW DATE

FridayNovember 20, 20208:00pm $46.00

At the Wilson Theatre at Vogel Hall at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts, Milwaukee, WI.

Tickets on sale at the Marcus Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com or 414-273- 7206.

Quick Calendar

Winner of the Independent Music Award, in the Live Performance Album category for his latest triple live album "Encore" (2014), "Rose d'Or" of the Montreux Festival for his first album, "Près de Paris" (Switzerland, 1976), "Best World Music Guitar Player " by the readers of Guitar Player Magazine (USA, 2008), Pierre Bensusan is recognized as one of the premier musicians of our time.

If "World Music" is music that pays tribute to the spirit of a collection of human beings through distinct rhythms, traditional instruments and harmonic colors, French-Algerian guitarist, singer and composer Pierre Bensusan can be recognized as one of the most eloquent and world musicians today.

Born in Oran, French-Algeria, in 1957, when France was decolonizing its Empire, Pierre Bensusan's family moved to Paris when he was 4. He began formal studies on piano at the age of 7 and at 11 taught himself guitar. Influenced in those early days by the folk revival blooming in Britain, France and North America, Bensusan began first to explore his own diverse musical heritage and then moved to the horizons beyond.

At 17 he signed his first recording contract, and one year later his first album "Pres de Paris" won the Grand Prix du Disque upon his debut at the Montreux Festival in Switzerland.

Described by the L.A. Times as "one of the most unique and brilliant acoustic guitar veterans in the world music scene today", Pierre's name became synonymous with contemporary acoustic guitar genius, long before the terms New Age, New Acoustic Music or World Music were invented. He has the ability to make a single guitar sound like an entire band as he brings the audience on a mesmerizing musical journey. And yet, Bensusan is more than what any musician or music lover expects from a guitarist. He is a composer as well as a bilingual and a brave improvisational vocalist, melding whistles and resonant low notes with something like his own scat technique.

There is a sense of something both playful and serious in his work, an unparalleled sense of freedom in his compositions and his improvisations. His "manner" of playing defies classification - crossing world, classical, jazz, traditional, folk and more. None can be isolated as simply "Brazilian", "Arabic" or "French"; rather, they represent our world in its current state, a world sharing itself, fusing cultures together in ways we have never experienced. A great embassador of peace. Not to be missed!

Author, columnist, and comedian Steve Hofstetter is often called the hardest working man in show-business. With all due respect to the late James Brown.

Hofstetter's national TV debut came on ESPN's Quite Frankly, where Stephen A. Smith yelled at him for three minutes. Hofstetter has also appeared on CBS' "Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson", Showtime's "White Boyz in the Hood", VH1's "Countdown", Sundance's "On the Road in America", and ABC's "Barbara Walter's Special", where he thankfully did not cry. He is the host and executive producer of "Laughs" on Fox networks, where he only cries occasionally.

One of the top booked acts on the college circuit, the original writer for collegehumor.com has also released six albums. Hofstetter has written humor columns for the New York Times, SportsIllustrated.com, and NHL.com, where he publicly admitted to being a Ranger fan.

After hosting Four Quotas on Sirius Satellite Radio for two seasons, Hofstetter moved to broadcast radio, and his Sports Minute (Or So) was syndicated on over 170 stations and in over 30 newspapers. Hofstetter's second live comedy album ("Cure For the Cable Guy") reached #20 on Billboard's comedy charts. His third album ("Dark Side of the Room") was the first ever pay-what-you-want" comedy album, since people were going to steal it anyway. His fourth album consisted of an hour of 100% ad-libbed material, which is, frankly, nuts. And his fifth album hit #1 on iTunes' comedy charts, which is also a bit nuts.

Hofstetter's brutal tour schedule consists of over 100 colleges and dozens of clubs every year, and is fueled by an immense online popularity, tons of press, and a Prius with great gas mileage. He reached 200,000 friends on Facebook and 400,000 more on MySpace, and high shelves in grocery stores.

While Hofstetter's live shows are routinely sold out, he is best known for his writing, first published at age 15, mainly to impress girls. At 18, he co-founded "Sports Jerk of the Week", an irreverent website featured by press like USA Today's Baseball Weekly, Sports Illustrated and CNN. And at 20, Hofstetter took a year off of school to head up web content for the New York Yankees. The Yankees won the World Series that year, which would have been wonderful if they hadn't beaten Hofstetter's Mets. Yes, he's also a Mets fan. Poor kid.

While an undergraduate at Columbia University, Hofstetter was a well-read columnist for the Columbia Daily Spectator and a voice of the Lions. After a summer writing for Maxim, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated for Kids, Hofstetter syndicated his column in several newspapers.

Without his glasses, Hofstetter also looks a great deal like Michael Rappaport.

More than four decades have passed since Steve Forbert made his way to New York City from his Meridian, Mississippi birthplace in quest of a career in music. It was the most unlikely time and place for a folk singer to leap into the fray in a burgeoning scene where new wave and punk were emerging while he took the stage as a the archetypal folkie, armed with just an acoustic guitar and sheaf of very personal songs. After busking on the street for change from passers by, he rose to sharing bills at CBGB's with the likes of Talking Heads, The Shirts and John Cale as well as headlining more traditional venues such as The Bitter End and Kenny's Castaways. Against staggering odds, he found blazing success early on with a string of critically acclaimed and commercially accepted albums including Alive on Arrival (1978), Jackrabbit Slim (1979), and Little Stevie Orbit (1980) and a most unlikely smash hit single, "Romeo's Tune."

His career had its share of triumphs as well as stumbles and disappointments as did his private life. Through it all, over the course of a marriage, divorce, raising three children, writing and recording 18 studio albums and fronting an ever changing line-up of supporting musicians, he persevered and stayed true to his roots and the folk ethos.

Now, those life-changing experiences have been chronicled by Forbert in Big City Cat: My Life In Folk Rock, co-written with Therese Boyd, that will be released September 14 by PFP Publishing. The memoir, originally conceived as a stage play, offers a uniquely introspective view of a life and career during a period of cultural upheaval and the author's emerging self-awareness. Sharing reflections and journals he kept at the time, Forbert weaves an absorbing narrative that fully addresses the trials, travails and triumphs that would eventually play out over the course of his prolific 40+ year career. With a colorful cast of characters that includes managers Danny Fields and Linda Stein, along with such music legends as Doc Pomus and John Simon, it offers a revelatory look at his personal life and family, as well. Big City Cat: My Life In Folk Rock features first-person commentary from those who worked with Forbert on the road and in the studio.

The book will, in a manner of speaking, be accompanied by its own soundtrack. Simultaneous with the release comes an evocative new Steve Forbert album from Blue Rose Music entitled The Magic Tree. Produced by Karl Derfler (Tom Waits, No Doubt, Two Gallants), it offers a series of songs gleaned from previously recorded acoustic demos, augmented with new backing tracks. The collection rings with the verve and vitality that Forbert's fans have always come to expect. It takes on special meaning in light of the recent health scare that sidelined him for several months while he recovered from kidney surgery and chemotherapy with the help of his girlfriend of 17 years. Consistently upbeat and optimistic, the album's songs recorded in Meridian, Nashville, New York, and New Jersey and Virginia convey a firm sense that age ought not diminish a lust for living. Big City Cat and The Magic Tree underscore what revered critic the late Paul Nelson wrote about Forbert in Rolling Stone almost 40 years ago: "..Nothing, nothing in this world, is going to stop Steve Forbert, and on that I'll bet anything you'd care to wager."

Dana Erlandson has been making his homegrown "Americana" music for more than 30 years. He has opened for and in many cases played with..... America, Brewer and Shipley, Jackson Browne, Stacey Earle & Mark Stuart, Steve Forbert, Richie Furay, Nanci Griffith, John Hartford, John Hiatt, Lucy Kaplansky, Leo Kottke, David Lindley, Pat MacDonald, Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys, Kevin Montgomery, the Nashville Bluegrass Band, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Todd Snider, Al Stewart, Greg Trooper, and Jerry Jeff Walker . Dana celebrates a new decade with a brand new CD release called "Coming Home".

With his silk-like vocals, Mutlu gently showers over melodies like rain. A Philadelphia native and first-generation American of Turkish decent, Mutlu combines his innate Philly-soul style with elements of folk, reggae and rock. This cohesive blend of music creates a rare and retro sound that is entirely timeless.

Mutlu has already made substantial headway with his high-caliber soulful sound. He's collaborated and toured extensively as a support act with legendary duo Daryl Hall & John Oates. He even holds the distinction of having made the most guest appearances on Daryl Hall's acclaimed, award-winning TV show "Live From Daryl's House". Mutlu has toured as a support act and longtime collaborator with noted singer/songwriter Amos Lee, and has shared stages with the likes of Adele, Katy Perry, John Hiatt, Leon Russell, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Todd Rundgren, Shuggie Otis & many more. Additionally, he was the support act on the North American leg of Joe Jackson's acclaimed "Rain" tour. Mutlu has rocked stages across Europe and America, including: Greek Theatre (Los Angeles, CA), Ascend Amphitheater (Nashville, TN), Tower Theatre (Philadelphia, PA), Royal Festival Hall (London, UK), to name a few.

Mutlu Onaral began writing music shortly after he picked up the guitar in his mid-teens. He then continued on to play in a few bands and join an acapella group during college. While growing up steeped in Philadelphia's deep R&B traditions, Mutlu eagerly absorbed the fundamentals of old-school soul music and incorporated it into his own musical persona. "I've always loved all kinds of music, but it was my love of soul music and especially artists like Stevie Wonder, Bill Withers and Al Green that inspired me to have a career in music", Mutlu says. His local success in Philadelphia led to a recording deal with Manhattan/EMI Records, which released his acclaimed 2008 debut album Livin' It and was produced by the late, great T-Bone Wolk. The LP featured guest appearances by Daryl Hall, Amos Lee, G. Love and Raheem DeVaughn.

Six EPs later, Mutlu is has released his 7-song collection entitled: Good Trouble. Mutlu co-produced the record with songwriter/producer Darius Amendolia. Additionally, Good Trouble was mixed and mastered by Grammy winning producer/engineer Phil Nicolo who has also worked with renowned artists like John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Lauryn Hill, Aerosmith, and others. The album features the lead soul-folk single "Lifeline". The empowering new track touches on the search for unity within a divided society. Mutlu hones in on the importance up standing up for justice and equality. Other songs like "Scarred" and "Work For It" discuss the mind's worst enemies between depression and self-doubt. Mutlu empathizes these feelings and offers something real and relatable to listeners. Good Trouble also includes "Nothing In This Whole Wide World" featuring John Oates, a song that admirably channels that classic, 1970's Philly-soul sound. The track was co-produced by John Oates and Hall & Oates guitarist Shane Theriot, and includes Hall & Oates band members Brian Dunne (drums) and Klyde Jones (bass).

Mutlu's deeply rooted retro grooves and smooth vocals continue to win widespread praise. He has been supported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, NY Times, LA Times, and others. Mutlu's inspiring songwriting carries resonating messages that are undeniably limitless, while instilling hope in audiences worldwide.

American Singer/Songwriter from Monticello, Arkansas by way of Nashville, Tennesse, Ward Davis has had songs recorded by Trace Adkins, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Wade Hayes, Sammy Kershaw, Bucky Covington, Jimmie Van Zant, Buddy Jewel, Carolina Rain, The Roys, and more. Most recently, Ward Davis co-wrote "I'm Not The Devil" with Cody Jinks, with whom he subsequently toured with nationwide. With over 250 shows per year under his belt as both a headliner and support act, Ward Davis' already popular live show is growing at exponential rates.

Last night, the blue light reflected off of the cement in a tiny listening lounge in St. Charles, Iowa. A conformed church housed a bar in the front full of rogue townies, and a lounge in the back. "Turn your phones off," the host of the lounge barked into the microphone. "Turn them off, sit back, and pay attention. This guy is quiet, and he's going to tell you some stories."And my eyebrows raised when his hoarse voice breathed life into a quiet, rapt crowd. With his eyes closed, he sang songs -- chunks of him offered up to a willing mass. "I'm not a singer," he said eventually, looking down at his guitar. I leaned in to listen harder. "I'm not a guitarist. I'm a song writer." In his songs were stories and in his stories were words pushed together that took my breath away, and in his stories were words that oozed the Blood from the Before, and in his stories were ripped edges. I wanted to know it all. I wanted to know the names of the chunks and I wanted to inspect the hole in his chest and I wanted to know where those melodies come from and I wanted to know how he chooses the words. I wanted to know what he has written on the scraps of paper in his wallet and I wanted to know if his handwriting changes when he knows it's a good one. It was a listening lounge, and we were supposed to be quiet and listen, but he played a song we all knew. And we sang the words with him. We couldn't help it -- not one single person. A crooked grin formed behind the microphone and I'm fairly certain that's why he does what he does. Not for the lights. Not for the cheers. For sure not for the money. He does it for the people that hear the story and say, "Yes. Me, too. I have been there, too." In a town out in the middle of the cornfields of Iowa, a group of people sang the words back to him that he had written. A melody chunked out of one disaster from his life, and sewn together with a rhyme, and maybe that's how you heal the hurt.

Hailed by the New York Times as "one of the great soul interpreters of her generation," five-time Grammy nominee Bettye LaVette is a vocalist who can take any type of song -- jazz or country, pop or rhythm & blues -- and make it her own. LaVette's commitment to artistry has earned the admiration of musical peers such as Jon Bon Jovi ("she doesn't just sing the song, she lives in each of them") and Bonnie Raitt, who praised her as "one of the most incredible R&B singers singing today...a force of nature." Over the course of her remarkable, six-decade career, LaVette has sung for President Obama, published an autobiography, placed six records on the rhythm & blues charts, and starred in a hit musical. And, as proven by Blackbirds, her second recording for the legendary Verve label, she continues to scale new artistic heights.

Born Betty Jo Haskins in Muskegon, Michigan, LaVette moved at a young age to Detroit's North End, where her neighbors included 1950s music stars such as Jackie Wilson. In 1962, at the age of 16, she stepped into a recording studio for the first time and the result was a top 10 rhythm & blues hit, "My Man -- He's a Lovin' Man." Released on Atlantic Records, a leader in African American popular music, the song made LaVette an overnight star. LaVette returned to the charts in 1965, with "Let Me Down Easy," a haunting ballad that for years became her signature song. 1969 brought another hit, "He Made a Woman out of Me" -- a classic of Memphis soul that showcased LaVette's vocal timbre and masterful sense of timing.

After her first full-length album, Child of the Seventies, was inexplicably shelved by Atlantic in 1972 (it would finally be released in 2000), LaVette turned to the theatrical stage, appearing in a national tour of Broadway's Bubbling Brown Sugar. In 1982, she signed with her hometown label, Motown, to release Tell Me a Lie. The album's hit single, "Right in the Middle (of Falling in Love)," brought LaVette a new round of critical and popular acclaim. By the start of the 1990s she had become a regular performer on the UK's "northern soul" scene, where British music lovers made collector's items of her 1960s singles. All the while, she was asserting herself as a contemporary artist: 2003's A Woman Like Me won the W.C. Handy Award for Comeback Blues Album of the Year.

The success of A Woman Like Me marked the onset of LaVette's career revival. In 2005 she signed with ANTI- Records for I've Got My Own Hell to Raise, a collection of songs from female writers. Three ANTI- releases followed, along with several events that rank as career highlights. In 2006 she received a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation. Then, in December 2008, LaVette delivered her rendition of the Who's "Love Reign O'er Me" at the Kennedy Center Honors, as the audience watched in astonishment. The following January, she performed "A Change Is Gonna Come" with Jon Bon Jovi as part of Barack Obama's inaugural celebrations.

Things Have Changed, an album of Bob Dylan songs produced by Steve Jordan, marked LaVette's Verve debut in 2018. It received two Grammy nominations. Blackbirds, whose release will coincide with LaVette's induction into the Blues Music Hall of Fame, represents a further step in her artistic evolution. Working again with producer Jordan, who also plays drums, and a group of celebrated musicians (Smokey Hormel on guitar, Monty Croft on vibes, bassist Tom Barney and veteran keyboardist Leon Pendarvis), LaVette delivers impassioned readings of songs associated with African American female vocalists of the 1950s. Nina Simone's "I Hold No Grudge," which was suggested for LaVette by the original writer, Angelo Badalamenti, captures the defiance we associate with Simone while adding warmth and hopefulness. "Save Your Love for Me," popularized by Nancy Wilson, reflects LaVette's development as a vocal stylist who, through the warmth and precision with which she caresses each lyric, creates the kind of intimate mood once associated with smoky nightclubs and after- hours spots. Meanwhile, "Strange Fruit," first performed by Billie Holiday, is a harrowing critique of American racism that still says much about the country today.

"I didn't want to do it in any way that had been done before," LaVette says of "Strange Fruit" -- an explanation that speaks to her process for the album as a whole -- "but I wanted it to be dramatic." The ideal, she adds, is for "your interpretation to be as interesting as that original one." To that end, LaVette chose songs that she could personalize into reflections of her own experience. Paul McCartney's "Blackbird," while anomalous in that it isn't connected with a particular female vocalist, nonetheless fits into the project's scope because it speaks for the struggles faced by these women -- LaVette's musical forbears -- as they worked to build and maintain their careers. "All my life," LaVette sings, shifting McCartney's original lyrics into the first person, "I have waited for this moment to arrive." In curating the songs for Blackbirds, LaVette has established a dialogue with the great women who preceded her while reaffirming herself as a vital, living presence.

The Devil has always been there. He is the great outsider, the original iconoclast. He is a conniving little shit and never seems to tire of giving humanity a wedgie or a wet willie just for a laugh. The Devil is capable of taking many forms. He can exist as one being or spread out amongst many. He can present himself as an ordinary man or as a horrific cloven-hoofed beast depending on his mood. Above all else, The Devil lives to corrupt, to adulterate, to defile.

Electric Six has often used The Devil as subject matter for its songs because of that last bit, the part about corruption and adulteration. That's what Electric Six has been trying to do with its music now for quite some time!!!! We want to corrupt young women....just like The Devil!!! There's nothing more rewarding than the seduction of a young innocent maiden, forcing her to wear demonic dresses, levitating her towards the great fiery skull and watching her eyes turn black as she gives into evil and becomes the bride of The Devil!!!! That....is why we started this band....to help women realize their potential as sexy evil maidens with eyes reflecting the utter darkness of a corrupted soul.

With its fourteenth studio album Bride of the Devil, Electric Six examines the concepts of evil and corruption, humanity's various falls from grace, the nine circles of purgatory and of course, the internet itself. Bride of the Devil opens with the thunderous opener "The Opener", a bombastic celebration of the arena rock Electric Six never got to play. The next two numbers are textbook ear worm guitar pop numbers that deal with debilitating income inequality and nepotism ("Daddy's Boy") and the horrors of being forced into a pool of toxic waste by an a rabid Doberman trained to kill ("(It Gets) (A Little) Jumpy").

And then we get to the title track, a radio anthem, where it all becomes clear that The Devil is a metaphor for Russia and the United States is the young girl who is seduced, corrupted and wedded into a Satanic covenant with the beast. It's all there in black and white. The Carrie Underwood-esque lyrics alongside a backdrop of vodka and caviar and backchannels and Seychllian bank accounts. That's how they did it. They went after our country performers and got the rubes to feel good about being Russian assets. And still, it is the feel-good anthem of the summer.

Finally, the haunting album closer "Worm In the Wood" is Electric Six at its most serious, most tender and emotional. Haunting. Effervescent. Corrupt. Jaundiced. Tired.

So there you have it. Electric Six is back with its fourteenth record and it's poppy and feel-good, as well as heavy, both sonically and lyrically. Our sound will corrupt you and enslave you as the beautiful demonic bride you know you truly are. Fraulein, take this severed hand with it's creepy long nails from the beginning of time. To do so is truly thine destiny.

Speedealer originally formed in 1992 in Lubbock, TX, under the name REO Speedealer. In 1997 when REO Speedwagon served the band a cease-and-desist order on their moniker, they shortened their name to Speedealer and released their debut, self-titled album on Royalty Records. The following year, after the departure of drummer Todd Mcglaulin and guitarist Mike Noyes, the hard rocking foursome -- made up of singer/guitarist Jeff Hirshberg, bassist Rodney Skelton, and newly added drummer Harden Harrison(Rigor Mortis) and guitarist Eric Schmidt(Pervis) --, recorded and released their follow-up record, Here Comes Death, on the same label. Royalty Records went bankrupt soon after the band's second release, leaving Speedealer to their own devices for exposure.

Label-less and musically driven, they played 309 shows in 1999 to stay in the public eye, pairing up with such like-minded, aggressive rockers as Motörhead, Fu Manchu, Neurosis, Zeke, and GWAR. Speedealer's efforts finally paid off when Palm Records A&R man Michael Alago (who signed Metallica to Elektra and White Zombie to Geffen) contracted the band to his label. Palm Records re-released Here Comes Death in 2000, and Second Sight (produced by Jason Newstead of Metallica) in 2002. In 2003 Casey Orr (Rigor Mortis, GWAR, Ministry, and Burden Brothers) took over bass duties for Speedealer. Then came Dead Teenager's release of Bleed, and Radical Record's release of Speedealer's live at GBGB recording Burned Alive. In 2012 Jeff Hirshberg decided to stop playing live shows but continues writing music with the band. Speedealer's forthcoming album titled Blue Days Black Nights will be released May 6, 2019 Current touring lineup is Eric Schmidt /Guitar, Harden Harrison/Drums, Rick Pearson (Buck Pets)/ bass, Daniel Barron (The Swingin' Dicks) /vocals.

Jeffrey Gaines has been heralded for his soul-searching lyrics and his powerful live performances.

With only his voice and a guitar for accompaniment, Jeffrey Gaines has earned a reputation as a captivating performer, entertaining audiences everywhere he goes.

Raised in Harrisburg, PA by parents more inclined to spin soul classics by Aretha and Otis than the New Wave and Brit Rock blasting from their son's room, a teenaged Gaines began singing and playing guitar in several local garage bands. He soon decided to set out on his own and quickly landed a record deal, releasing Jeffrey Gaines, the first of his five studio releases. The album garnered four stars from The Philadelphia Inquirer, describing Gaines as "...an ethereal soul...insistent, impassioned, full of self-knowledge." Somewhat Slightly Dazed, and Galore followed. Interview Magazine called Gaines' music "soul-searching" and "refreshingly free of jargon, sentiment or cliché."

Jeffrey Gaines released Always Be (Artemis) to both critical and commercial praise. Featuring his emotional interpretation of "In Your Eyes" and his own soaringly beautiful "Always Be," the album hit #5 on R&R Callout America CHR/Pop list, also reaching #45 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart. The New York Post proclaimed Always Be as "a dozen-song mix...that completely illustrates the depth he is capable of."

Gaines' impressive catalogue grew with Toward The Sun, produced by Mitchell Froom (Elvis Costello, Bonnie Raitt, and Crowded House). The Boston Globe declared that "Gaines' soulful, wounded vocals make a case for his being one of pop's finest singers...an artist who deserves far more attention than some of his more hyped, yet less talented peers." Mojo noted, "This established soul-folkie's sexy growl has an underlying edge, making it a memorable album. Heartfelt unpretentious."

Throughout his career, Gaines has built a rapport with his fans unlike any other in popular music today. Gaines goes as far as letting his fans influence the songs he performs each night. "When it's just me playing, I only know the first song I'm going to play, but from there the energy and the vibe tell me what the next song is going to be. Someone may yell a song, and I'm like 'Exactly! Good call.' That's so fun to me, keeping it exciting and spontaneous. I don't even know what's around the corner, and the crowd doesn't either." Based on that relationship with the audience, Gaines released Jeffrey Gaines Live (CD / DVD) followed by Live In Europe, which was recorded during his 25-city tour with Joe Jackson. JG's 2016 return to Europe will be accompanied with long-awaited new music, with a release to follow in early 2017.

For over two decades, Cowboy Mouth has dished up its unique style of rock & roll gumbo, mixing a rowdy spirit reflective of the band's hometown -- New Orleans -- with the fierce firepower of a group that lives on the road. These Louisiana natives have played more than 2,500 concerts and launched their signature song, "Jenny Says," into the upper half of the Billboard rock charts. Above all else, they earned a well-deserved rep as a raucous, redemptive, live music experience.

Formed during the glory days of grunge music, Cowboy Mouth forged a different sound from the very start. It's a sound rooted in rock, punk, blues, and the attitude of the Big Easy, a town known for its week-long parties and swampy, southern vibe. Bandleader Fred LeBlanc, who'd previously sharpened his teeth with the punk band Dash Rip Rock, pulls double-duty as the group's frontman and drummer, leading the charge with his larger-than-life personality and percussive attack. During the band's early days, record companies warned him against singing and drumming at the same time, claiming that audiences would never go for it... but by the mid-'90s, those same record companies were clamoring to sign the band to a major-label deal.

In other words, in a decade filled with angsty alt-rock, Cowboy Mouth stood out for all the right reasons.

The band released its original music with MCA Records, then Atlantic Records. Once the 2000s kicked into gear, the band released music on its own label, cutting out the middleman and focusing on the biggest thing that's kept Cowboy Mouth afloat since 1990: the audience.

"Cowboy Mouth isn't so much about the people onstage as it is about the feeling in the crowd," says LeBlanc.

The people onstage certainly help, though. Since the band's inception, LeBlanc has shared that stage with guitarist John Thomas Griffith (formerly of the band Red Rockers and singer / co-writer of their hit song "China"). Now backed by bandmates Matt Jones on guitar and Brian Broussard on bass, LeBlanc and Griffith have led Cowboy Mouth on a wild, critically-acclaimed ride, selling more than 500,000 albums domestically, playing shows with artists like Bo Diddley (whose bluesy, beat-driven music has always been a big influence on Cowboy Mouth's own sound), and performing in front of more than 9 million fans.

Cowboy Mouth's music lives in concert with its loyal fans! Fred's raw and engaging performance style has played ring leader to the audience for decades.

"Our shows are celebratory, life-affirming experiences," LeBlanc says proudly. "With every show, no matter where it is, we try to turn it into New Orleans during the middle of Mardi Gras. It's an unique live concert experience. It's like a southern gospel revival without the religion."

Over the years, an estimated 9 million people would agree. We hope to see you all out on the road!

Born and raised on the Yankton Sioux Reservation in South Dakota, Indigenous front man Mato Nanji (Ma-TOE NON-gee) dedicates his latest release Time Is Coming (on Blues Bureau International) to the indigenous youth and all young people on the indigenous reservations.

Mato Nanji's father, the late Greg Zephier, Sr., was a well-known and highly respected spiritual advisor and spokesperson for the International Indian Treaty Council. In addition to this leadership role, he was an accomplished musician and a member of the musical group, The Vanishing Americans. Formed by Greg and his brothers in the '60's, The Vanishing Americans toured nationally and shared bills with such legends as Bonnie Raitt. Besides being heavily influenced by the music his father and uncles were making, Mato was exposed to Greg's vast collection of blues records by legendary artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan and B.B. King. Consequently, Mato embraced and began utilizing his own musical talent at a young age. With the experience, love and wisdom of their father to guide them, Mato, his brother, sister and cousin formed the band Indigenous while in their late teens.

After much time invested in practicing and building a following, they began touring extensively across the country. In 1998, they released their award winning debut album Things We Do. The title track's video, directed by Chris Eyre (Smoke Signals), won the American Indian Film Festival Award and was shown at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival. Indigenous' music caught the attention of blues icon B.B. King and the young band was invited to play on his annual B.B. King's Blues Tour in 1999. Sadly, Mr. Zephier would pass away before seeing his children receive this great honor.

With momentum gaining, Indigenous' 2000 sophomore release, Circle, was produced and arranged by Stevie Ray Vaughan's longtime friend and collaborator, the late Doyle Bramhall, Sr. Three more cds; Fistful of Dirt (2002), Indigenous (2003) and Long Way Home (2005) would follow before the 2006 decision by the siblings to 'disband' and pursue their own musical paths but Mato carried on with the Indigenous band name. "Playing with my family for 10 years was a lot of fun, but it was time to grow and keep moving forward."

Mato continued touring and in 2006 released Chasing The Sun. Two of the cd's songs, "Come On Home" and "Leaving", were featured on the hit Discovery Channel show The Deadliest Catch. "Come on Home" was also featured on FX's Sons of Anarchy.

On 2008's Broken Lands, an intensely personal record, Mato and Leah, his lyricist and wife, pay tribute to his Native heritage. The album decries the poverty, isolation and reality of life on the reservation with "Place I Know." The album gains its title from the line, "all is lost in these broken lands."

Of The Acoustic Sessions (released in 2010), Mato commented, "It's a collection of some of my favorite songs that celebrate 10 years of releasing albums. Every song that I have ever written began with the acoustic guitar, so it only felt natural to create an acoustic album."

Indigenous featuring Mato Nanji (2012) would mark Nanji's debut on the Blues Bureau International label and the beginning of his collaboration with noted producer, Mike Varney. Joining Mato on the disc's opening track "Free Yourself, Free Your Mind" is the soulful Jonny Lang. On it, the two guitar-masters trade vocals and guitar solos. It's truly a blues lover's 'match made in heaven'.

In addition to his Indigenous 'day job', Mato Nanji has been a member of the critically acclaimed Experience Hendrix Tour since 2002. Playing alongside original Jimi Hendrix band members Billy Cox and the late Mitch Mitchell, the tour roster includes some of today's blues greats including Buddy Guy, Chris Layton and Tommy Shannon (Double Trouble), Jonny Lang, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Eric Johnson, and Robert Randolph.

Once the 2012 Experience Hendrix Tour concluded, Mato and fellow EHT tour mates David Hidalgo (Los Lobos) and Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars) would collaborate and release the hard-driving, psychedelic blues-infused 3 Skulls and the Truth (Blues Bureau International) disc. The album's no-holds barred setting is the ideal foundation for the three veteran axemen to simply 'let it fly'.

February 2013 would bring the Mato Nanji-inspired release from trance-blues artist Otis Taylor, My World Is Gone (Telarc). Mato and Otis explore the plight of the American Indian people in a lightning bolt of musical creativity and social commentary. "Mato inspired the entire direction of this album," says Taylor. "We were talking about history backstage at a Jimi Hendrix tribute concert he had just played, and, in reference to his people, the Native American Nakota Nation, he said 'My world is gone.' The simplicity and honesty of those four words was so heavy, I know what I had to write about."

"My dad was my favorite musician so he really influenced me a lot with everything. I just felt it was time to pay tribute to him and his band," says Nanji. That tribute, Vanishing Americans, was released on May 21, 2013 and promptly found its place on iTunes Top 10 Blues Chart. Blues Rock Review (6/5/13) said: "each song is brought together with heavy and powerful guitar riffs akin to those of Carlos Santana and Jimi Hendrix, while bellowing, raspy vocals turn a talented guitarist's vision into a relatable song for many, just as any praiseworthy blues album should."

"Mato continues to refine his guitar and vocal vocabularies with each new release and is also expanding his songwriting skills with his wife Leah," said producer Mike Varney of Time Is Coming (May 2014). From the infectious opening track of "Grey Skies"; the Soundgarden/Rage Against the Machine influenced "Won't Be Around No More"; and the gut-wrenching blues of "Don't Know What To Do", and at all points in between, Mato Nanji "tears at his guitar strings, bending and shaking them to within an inch of their life, it is clear that he is no mere copyist. He is a genuine virtuoso..." (Rhys Williams, bluesblastmagazine.com 5/14).

Ultimately, Mato dedicates Time Is Coming, to the Indigenous youth and all young people on the Indigenous reservations. Of the song says Nanji; "still to this day, the struggle continues to just live in peace. Growing up here on the reservation I've seen a lot of broken families...broken homes. I feel our families' "Tiospaye" are the core of what makes us who we are. Now family and its meaning is not as strong as it used to be for our people...almost non-existent. So I send my heart and soul out to the indigenous children having a tough time in their lives and in their homes. This record is inspired by them and made in their honor. I hope for the best for all. Tomorrow is another day."

The Plateros, a three piece award winning family band from the Navajo Nation in Tohajiilee, New Mexico consider Mato Nanji and Indigenous one of their greatest musical influences.

Levi and The Plateros played their first show, a festival in Bird Springs, AZ in December 2004, and by April 2005, they would find themselves onstage performing at the largest PowWow in the world, The Gathering of Nations. Lead guitarist Levi, with his natural born talent, slid across the stage with power chords and screaming blues that amazed the packed crowd. He was just 13 years old.

In the years to follow, Levi, along with his cousins Douglas Platero on drums and Bronson Begay on bass would receive numerous nominations for native music and video awards, and their cd Hang On would take home a win for Best Blues Album at the 2009 New Mexico Music Awards.

In 2012, they joined Indigenous for The Kinship Tour, with The Plateros opening the double bill. They would join Mato for blistering encores that would bring the proverbial house down.

Touring in support of Time Is Coming in the summer of 2014, Mato Nanji would once again call on Levi, Douglas and Bronson to hit the road with him. This time, though, would be different. They would be onstage as Indigenous' rhythm section; Mato and Levi trading leads and solos while Bronson and Douglas provided the strong, stable rhythmic foundation that allowed the two guitarists to 'tear it up'.

As the band made its way across the east coast, the after show buzz was audible. The incendiary chemistry of Mato Nanji, Levi Platero, Bronson Begay and Douglas Platero innate.

They are Indigenous.

Joe Louis Walker, a Blues Hall of Fame inductee and four-time Blues Music Award winner celebrates a career that exceeds a half a century. His new album Everybody Wants A Piece cements his legacy as a prolific torchbearer for the blues. Looking back on his rich history, Walker shares, "I'd like to be known for the credibility of a lifetime of being true to my music and the blues. Sometimes I feel I've learned more from my failures, than from my success . But that's made me stronger and more adventurous. And helped me create my own style . I'd like to think that when someone puts on one of my records they would know from the first notes, 'That's Joe Louis Walker.'"

Always an artist deeply expressive lyrically, Walker continues to write and sing about themes that are universal. On "Black & Blue" he talks about a love affair that's falling apart, but there's an effort to keep it going. He offers, "The lyric 'Let's find a quiet place, A place out of town...We Need to talk this thru, Be honest & True' says it all in trying to save the relationship." He cites the title track as a composition that might not have a deep meaning, but in presenting the thought, "Everybody wants a piece of your love," offers a double entendre that speaks for itself. With a deep history and background in gospel, Walker looks towards Wade in the Water" as an instant all time favorite. He reveals, "The inspirational lyric 'The water is deep, the water is cold, it chills my body, BUT NOT MY SOUL" is expressing my belief that the spiritual will carry you through when the physical can't."

This time out Joe has brought on Paul Nelson to produce his album which was recorded at his famed Chop Shop studio on the east coast. Nelson is a Grammy winning guitarist/producer who was rock/blues legend Johnny Winter's guitarist, and who also appears as guest guitarist on two tracks on Everybody Wants A Piece.

A true powerhouse guitar virtuoso, unique singer and prolific songwriter, he has toured extensively throughout his career, performed at the world's most renowned music festivals, and earned a legion of dedicated fans. Walker's 1986 debut album Cold Is the Night on HighTone announced his arrival in stunning fashion, and his subsequent output has only served to further establish Walker as one of the leading bluesmen on the scene.

Born on December 25, 1949 in San Francisco, at age 14, he took up the guitar. Just two years later, he was a known quantity on the Bay Area music scene, playing blues with an occasional foray into psychedelic rock. For a while, he roomed with Mike Bloomfield, who introduced him to Jimi Hendrix and the Grateful Dead. Walker even made a brief pilgrimage to Chicago to check out the blues scene there. In 1975, burned out on blues, Walker turned to God, singing for the next decade with a gospel group, the Spiritual Corinthians. When the Corinthians played the 1985 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Walker was inspired to embrace his blues roots again. He assembled the Boss Talkers, and throughout the 1990s merged many of his gospel, jazz, soul, funk and rock influences with his trademark blues sensibilities on recordings released by Polydor/Polygram. These albums feature Walker's collaborations with a diverse group of first-rate artists including Branford Marsalis, James Cotton, Tower of Power, Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy, Taj Mahal, Ike Turner and Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown. Walker has steadily released recordings since the turn of the millennium, and recently signed to Provogue / Mascot Label Group.

NPR Music has called Walker "a legendary boundary-pushing icon of modern blues," and he is already being referred to within the blues world as a living legend. However, at this stage of his life, Walker profoundly shares, "I'd really like to inspire younger musicians to carry on the legacy of blues/roots music. But play, and do it your way. Don't be afraid to mix it up. There's no right, or wrong way. Just the way you wanna express yourself. And above all, ENJOY YOURSELF."

Backwoods bravado, patriot's pride, country soul, keg-thumping beats -- these are the qualities that Moonshine Bandits have championed since they began their journey. Armed with a hybrid arsenal of country and hip hop fusion, the California duo of Dusty 'Tex' Dahlgren and Brett 'Bird' Brooks are back with the grittiest, spirited and distinctly grass-roots release of their sixteen year campaign of musical badassery -- "Gold Rush."

If you ain't about this life then you ain't about shit." -- From the Track 'Mud Money' on the Moonshine Bandits latest release 'Gold Rush"'

Since their formation in Los Banos California in 2003 the Moonshine Bandits have continued a campaign of crossover genre-bending musical mayhem that appeals to the eclectic, color-outside-the-lines tastes of listeners, aka The Shiners, and they fiercely refuse to have their tastes confined and filed into categories. "Our musical style has always been full throttle and in your face," says Moonshine Bandit Tex. Just like the rumrunners, bootleggers, smugglers and outlaws of old -- the Moonshine Bandits provide a supply of the goods for the demand, defying the mandates and trends of mainstream pop culture.

The course of their career has seen ups and downs, hard partying and self-reflection. The Moonshine Bandits have crisscrossed the country performing hundreds of shows a year, ventured into branding their own beef jerky and moonshine, collaborated with some of the music business's most prolific artists, outshined in the face of record industry roadblocks, earned a fiercely loyal fan following, and embrace the unconventional. Hell, they've even had the honor of friend and adult film legend Tera Patrick spicing up a music video! It's all part of a journey filled with good, bad and even some ugly, but ultimately the Moonshine Bandit philosophy is summed up by Tex and Bird's joint statement -- "We always felt there aren't stops or boundaries if you pave your own lane."

And now the Moonshine Bandits have hit the proverbial motherlode with the release of Gold Rush on their very own record label MSB. Taking its inspiration from all that embodied the struggles and successes of America's extraordinary era when dreams were being made while hunting for that elusive precious gem. It wasn't entirely about the dollar sign though. The Gold Rush was far more dynamic in terms of the greater meaning and effect it had on all those who took part. Big or small, bust or windfall, for many people the Gold Rush ultimately provided the experience of building a new life in a wild place that had a code of its own.

"Our Gold Rush wasn't always about the glitter because we took the long haul," Tex says, and just like many of the hopeful dreamers who panned the creeks of the old west's badlands, the Moonshine Bandits encountered their share of setbacks but never quit. "We got in the trenches," Tex continues, "learned and got burned." The group's Gold Rush reflects on a career that wasn't about following some set of rules; this is about living by a code. Now with the debut of their own label, the group can fully exercise that code. "There's a right way, a wrong way, and now there's our way." Characterize it as rebellion, call it anti-establishment, or perhaps it's a little bit of symbolic of an elusive time when there actually was Honor among thieves, but the Bandits simply see it as lessons learned from experience.

Thematically, Tex and Bird describe the Gold Rush album as homage not only to the band's career journey but also, and profoundly, "a journey about the people we have come in contact with. The people that inspire our songs." This is especially true of the track "Two Bar Town" which speaks volumes of the brick and mortar, mom and pop's, local friends and corner watering holes that truly provided the foundation of everyday life, culture and economics in America. Tex says the theme is all about the 'small town' and despite the fact that 'small towns' have naturally changed with time that "doesn't mean you have to, you can still be proud of where you came from and keep those memories forever."

Long before people figured out country and rap had a lot in common, the Moonshine Bandits released their genre-blending album, "Whiskey & Women," and took the world of outlaw music by storm. The group's blue-collar work ethic and unwavering persistence has led to over 60 million views on the ShinerTV YouTube channel -- collectively over 80 million views on YouTube -- while their video for "My Kind of Country" peaked at #1 on CMT Pure. The Bandits also charted Billboard simultaneously with a top 10 in Rap and a top 20 in Country Music and have been Recognized by Rolling Stone Magazine, CMT, Youtube Honors, MTV, AOL THE BOOT, YAHOO, and the list goes on. Connecting with fans on all levels, Moonshine Bandits have built a solid "Shiner Nation" of loyal fans, started their own 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization known as Operation Packing Company, Inc. that specializes in sending supplies to our Troops Overseas, Beef Jerky and legal Moonshine. The Bandits earned a 2018 Telly Award for their "Take This Job" music video featuring David Allan Coe.

Since his Alligator debut 30 years ago, Southern blues-rock guitar wizard, vocalist and songwriter Tinsley Ellis has become a bona fide worldwide guitar hero. The Chicago Sun-Times says, "It's hard to overstate the raw power of his music." Now, he makes his triumphant return to Alligator Records with a powerful new album, Winning Hand. Armed with his signature molten licks, melodic riffs and rousing, intense solos, Ellis, as his legions of fans will attest, is among the blues world's best-loved, hardest working and most well-travelled statesmen. He has performed in all 50 United States as well as in Canada, Western and Eastern Europe, Australia and South America, earning legions of fans with his guitar virtuosity, passionate vocals and memorable original songs. Ellis is also revered as a guitarist's guitarist, with famous friends including Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, Oliver Wood, Jonny Lang and members of Widespread Panic calling on him to sit in and jam. "A musician never got famous staying home," he says.

Recorded in Nashville and produced by Ellis and keyboardist Kevin McKendree, the ten brilliantly performed, fervently sung tracks on Winning Hand include nine originals, ranging from blistering blues to heart-pounding rock to soulful ballads. As his only cover song, Ellis pays tribute to his greatest guitar-playing and songwriting influences with a Freddie King-inspired version of rock legend Leon Russell's "Dixie Lullaby." "Guitar, guitar, guitar is what this album is all about," says Ellis, who recorded primarily with his 1959 Fender Stratocaster, his 1967 Gibson ES 345 and his 1973 Les Paul Deluxe. Guitar World says, "Ellis' playing sparkles with depth and subtlety. Whether playing deep, slow blues or uptempo rockers, Ellis rides a gorgeously fat, pure tone."

Born in Atlanta in 1957, Ellis was raised in southern Florida. He discovered the blues through the back door of British Invasion bands like The Yardbirds, The Animals, Cream and The Rolling Stones as well as Southern rockers like The Allman Brothers. One night he and a friend were listening to records when his friend's older brother told them if they liked blues, they should really be listening to B.B. King. As luck would have it, King was in town for a week, and the upcoming Saturday afternoon show was just for teenagers.

Tinsley and his friend went, sitting transfixed in the front row. When B.B. broke a string on Lucille, he changed it without missing a beat, and handed the broken string to Ellis. After the show, B.B. came out and talked with fans, mesmerizing Tinsley with his warmth and kindness. Tinsley's fate was now sealed; he had to become a blues guitarist. He saw Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters and every other blues artist who came through town, always sitting up front, always waiting to meet the artists, take photos, get autographs. And yes, he still has B.B.'s string.

Already an accomplished teenaged musician, Ellis left Florida and returned to Atlanta in 1975. He soon joined a gritty local blues band, the Alley Cats. In 1981, along with veteran blues singer and harpist Chicago Bob Nelson, Tinsley formed The Heartfixers, a group that would become Atlanta's top-drawing blues band. After cutting a few Heartfixers albums for the Landslide label, Ellis was ready to head out on his own.

Georgia Blue, Tinsley's first Alligator release, hit the unprepared public by surprise in 1988. Critics and fans quickly agreed that a new and original guitar hero had emerged. The Chicago Tribune said, "Tinsley Ellis torches with molten fretwork. Ellis takes classic, Southern blues-rock workouts and jolts them to new life with a torrid ax barrage." Tinsley's next four releases--1989's Fanning The Flames, 1992's Trouble Time, 1994's Storm Warning, and 1997's Fire It Up--further grew his fan base and his fame. Features and reviews ran in Rolling Stone, The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, and in many other national and regional publications.

Guests including Peter Buck (R.E.M.), guitarist Derek Trucks (who made his recording debut with Tinsley at age 14) and keyboardist Chuck Leavell (The Rolling Stones) have joined him in the studio. Ellis' song "A Quitter Never Wins" was recorded by Jonny Lang, selling over a million copies. He in turn has made guest appearances on albums by The Allman Brothers, Gov't Mule, Colonel Bruce Hampton and others. Producers Eddy Offord (John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Yes) and even the legendary Tom Dowd (The Allman Brothers, Ray Charles) helped Ellis hone his studio sound.

A move to Capricorn Records in 2000 saw Ellis revisiting his Southern roots. In 2002, he joined the Telarc label, producing two well-received albums of soul-drenched blues-rock. He returned to Alligator in 2005, releasing Live-Highwayman, which captured the crowd-pleasing energy of his live shows. He followed it with two more incendiary studio releases, 2007's Moment Of Truth and 2009's Speak No Evil. He has since self-released four successful albums on his own Heartfixer label.

Over the course of his career, Ellis has shared stages with Stevie Ray Vaughan, Otis Rush, Willie Dixon, The Allman Brothers, Leon Russell, Son Seals, Koko Taylor, Albert Collins and many others. Whether he's on stage with his own band or jamming with artists like Buddy Guy, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, Gov't Mule or Widespread Panic, he always plays with grit, soul and unbridled passion. Back home on Alligator Records with his new album and a massive live tour in the works, Tinsley Ellis is ready to prove again that whenever he picks up a guitar, he's playing with a winning hand.

Altered Five Blues Band makes music with a swaggering stomp of bruising, barrelhouse grit. According to Downbeat magazine, frontman Jeff Taylor "sings powerfully" and "Jeff Schroedl's live-wire guitar reaches the high bar of mixed invention and fluidity." Blues Bytes magazine declares the group features "the funkiest rhythm section outside of Memphis."

A 2018 Blues Music Award nominee, the Milwaukee-based quintet released its new album, Ten Thousand Watts, September 6 on Blind Pig Records. Recorded over four days in Nashville, TN and produced by three-time Grammy winner Tom Hambridge, the 12 tracks stir up a thunderstorm of original, roots-rockin' music. The set kicks off with the burning boogie of "Right On, Right On" and is followed by "Too Mad to Make Up," a roadhouse rocker about a relationship in peril. The title track then finds Taylor strutting his stuff, testifying his powerful passion. The audacious theme continues with "Mischief Man," before the band cuts loose on "Great Minds Drink Alike," a sure-fire hit with the bar crowd. "Don't Rock My Blues" eases the tempo and captures a traditional vibe. The collection of succinct, tight-but-loose songs reflect the continuing evolution of the band's deft songwriting, blended with the intuitive musical interplay of the longtime bandmates. The album reached #10 on the Billboard Blues Chart, and hit #1 on both the iTunes and Amazon blues charts.

The new album arrives on the heels of back-to-back award-winning records. Cryin' Mercy won "Best Self-Released Album" at the International Blues Challenge in 2015, and Charmed & Dangerous scored Song of the Year at both the Independent Music Awards and Wisconsin Music Awards in 2018. Both albums reached the Top 5 in the iTunes blues store and hit #1 on the Roots Music Report Blues Album Chart. Guitar World magazine called the song "Charmed & Dangerous" a "menacing, swampy blues," and the track has been in regular rotation on SiriusXM's Bluesville along with many other programs and playlists. The album's third track, "Three Forks," was inspired by legendary Delta bluesman Robert Johnson and features music, adapted with permission, from the seminal classic "Crossroads."

Altered Five Blues Band now have five studio albums to their name, including Gotta Earn It (2012) and Bluesified (2008), both on Cold Wind Records. The group has performed at many renowned festivals and venues such as: Lucerne Blues Fest (Switzerland), Grolsch Blues Fest (Germany), W.C. Handy Blues Fest (Kentucky), Ann Arbor Blues Fest, King Biscuit Blues Fest, Baltic Blues Fest (Germany), Milwaukee Summerfest, Magic City Blues Fest (Montana), Fargo Blues Fest, B.B. King's Blues Club (Memphis), Buddy Guy's Legends (Chicago), and several appearances on local television.

Bassist Mark Solveson anchors the rock-solid rhythm section with drummer Alan Arber, who joined the band in 2017, and Raymond Tevich melds his crafty keyboard work to top off the group's signature sound. It's been said that "the blues is a feeling," so when the Minneapolis Star Tribune states that the band is a "righteous blast," you know they play it right.

The Florida quartet's fifth album and first since 2005 weaves together twelve tales of heroism, heartbreak, and healing. On Superfiction, Cold combine vivid, vibrant storytelling with elegant rock. It's a combination that the band has perfected since they burst onto the scene in 1998 with their self-titled debut. Cold preserve the alluring darkness that made them a rock mainstay with 13 Ways To Bleed On Stage (2001), Year Of The Spider (2003), and A Different Kind of Pain (2005), while honing their approach into an intricate, introspective, and inspirational style.

New songs like "Wicked World" teeter between a primal guitar crunch and airy choral poetry. Meanwhile, "So Long June" builds from a lilting melody into an entrancing hook. On "The Ballad of Nameless," A somber piano gives way to a bombastic beat before breaking into one last vocal exorcism. Cold--Scooter Ward (S.W.) [Vocals], Jeremy Marshall [Bass], Sam McCandless [Drums], and Zac Gilbert [Guitar]--have certainly tread similar ground before on hypnotic radio hits such as "Just Got Wicked" and "Stupid Girl," but their latest offering is the next chapter. Due out July 19, 2011 via the Eleven Seven Music, Superfiction is an open book just waiting to be read...

For Cold, Superfiction brought them back to their very roots. "The main idea was to go back to the lyrical fiction of the first and second records," recalls Ward. "This album isn't so real and emotional. Rather, it's comprised of these grand stories, and it's the most fun we've ever had making a record."

2011 was the best time for Cold to return with album number five. After nearly a decade on the road and making albums, the band took a much-deserved break in 2005. After four years, they realized how crucial Cold was not only to the members of the band but to the army of fans that they had touched. After regrouping for 2009's highly successful "Resurrection Tour," these four musicians promptly entered the studio to record what would become Superfiction. The dynamic was instantly different once they hunkered down in Ward's home studio.

"We'd really matured as people," says Marshall. "When we first came out, we were full of angst. Now, we think about everything before we jump. We have a more reserved attitude and, as a result, we've grown as musicians. We're not kids anymore."

McCandless echoes that sentiment. "The break made the band stronger. We had the privilege of touring before we wrote, and it was incredible to play in front of our fans again. When we hit the studio, we were hungry. Cold has this eternal chemistry because we grew up together. That made it even better for us to go in and write a new record."

Tapping into that chemistry, the band wrote and recorded the bulk of the album over the course of a mere month. That urgency colors the album's landscape, and there's real soul in each note. Co-producing with Kato Khandwala and Jeremy Parker, Superfiction sees Cold growing.

Sonically, the trademarks of Cold's sound remain intact. The bellowing bass, warm guitar hum, and driving drum beats all make for impactful music just like it did when the band first formed in 1996. Marshall goes on, "We like certain tones. We've always played in a lower key, and you learn how to use that to your advantage when you're trying to create emotion and accent certain lyrics and melodies. It took us years to develop our songwriting style because we tell stories with our music, sometimes we were a little rawer back in the day. Now, we've refined that sound we have."

The sound has a degree of refinement, but listeners can still fall into Ward's words the same way that they did on classics like "End of the World" and "No One." "I don't think the message is different," declares Ward. "Even though the songs are fictional, people can still gravitate towards them. I made sure the stories would evoke all emotions."

Those stories at the heart of Superfiction become the catalyst for a flurry of emotions. Whether it's the lament of superhero on "What Happens Now" or the ethereal lullaby of "Welcome2MyWorld," each and every song exists in its own creative sphere.

"It was a journey into a time when I was younger because I didn't feel confined to write about personal experiences," continues Ward. "The whole thing flowed. It was liberating. There was no border. I could go from a song about epic royalty to a song about Frank Sinatra singing in a backyard barbecue."

Ward's own family initially inspired him to tell these stories. His sixteen-year-old daughter Raven, inspired "The Flight of the Superstar" with her brilliant piano playing, while his younger daughter Cameron's fascination with princesses and fairytales gave him the idea for "Welcome2MyWorld." Then, he added his own cast of characters.

Those characters add depth to Superfiction. "As far as I'm concerned the characters in the stories have become real to me." In order to play these songs live, they have to come across that way.

In many ways, that emotional heft and detailed narrative evokes the '70s style. McCandless adds, "I hope this album touches people in a way that our favorite bands touched us. I'd love for Superfiction to inspire other musicians to create."

One big factor in the band's growth was the addition of Gilbert. He joined the band as a touring guitarist in 2005, but Superfiction is his first time in the studio with the band. "I put my whole heart and soul into it," he exclaims. "I love recording with these guys. It was a great experience. I learned a hell of a lot."

The title really sums it all up though. Ward reveals, "Superfiction is art that literally pops off its canvas or foundation. In that sense, it becomes something else. The word wraps up the record because we want these stories to come to life. I want you to sit down and listen to the songs and feel the stories. After you've read the story, you can visualize this unfolding in your mind."

It's impossible not to feel these stories, and they're only the beginning. Ward concludes, "If you're a diehard Cold fan, we delivered the band's traditional sound. With the lyrics, words, and stories, I want fans to think of the album as Cold's version of Grimm's Fairy Tales. Superfiction is whatever it makes you feel. I never thought ten years after we made a record, people would still be talking about it. That's rare, and I want to continue creating music like that." -- Rick Florino, January 2011

The R&B Cadets played their first gig shortly after New Year's in 1980 and their last in the summer of 1986. In that time they got a lot of folks out on the dance floor, playing a distinctive mix of of deep soul cuts from Paul Cebar's massive record collection and some sparkling originals, written by John Sieger, often in tandem with Michael Feldman, a friend and now longtime host of Public Radio's Whad'ya Know?

Splitting lead duties with Sieger and Cebar was the lovely chanteuse, Robin Pluer. Owner of one the lovelier voice heard in the midwest, Ms. Pluer was a dollop of sweetness at the top of the band's deep range. Rounding out the lineup was Mike Sieger, John's brother and vocal doppelganger, who played bass. Original drummer Cy Costabile, was later replaced by Bobby Schneider and the saxophonist Juli Wood was replaced by keyboard/sax man Bob Jennings.

In it's prime, the band had a large following in Milwaukee, where they were pretty much the house band at the late, lamented Century Hall. They travelled well too, with fans in the Twin Cities, Chicago, Madison and even New York where they played legendary clubs like CBGB's, The Knitting Factory and The Lone Star. Their only record, Top Happy, came out in 198-. It featured a song produced by Nick Lowe, a fan who had stumbled across them after playing a show in Milwaukee. The record got great reviews and could have been the start of even bigger things, but like many bands, people were pulling, and being pulled, in different directions.

The positive result of their breakup was two, then three very vital and entertaining acts. There was Semi-Twang, which concentrated on John's songs and did a record, Salty Tears for Warner Brothers that gathered more love than sales. John later moved to nashville and had many of his songs recorded by artist like Dwight Yoakam, Flaco Jimenez and The Bodeans.

Paul and Robin continued with the beefed up and ever-popular Milwaukeeans, releasing a record in the 1990s on Shenachie that got radio play around the country. That lineup stayed around until Robin bid adieu. Tired of touring and now married, she headed to New York for a while, before returning. She has carved out a special niche between soul, swing, standards and the French chanson that she loves, and is still performing today.

In 2009 Semi-Twang reunited and have released two CDs, both of which garnered raves. Paul has continued non-stop, his latest was out last year with his most recent moniker, Tomorrow Sound. The three headed beast has been in rehearsal, tightening up songs old and new. The crowd at their first reunion gig in many years was up and dancing at the first down beat, you probably will be too.

Greg Koch and the Koch-Marshall Trio consist of American guitarist Greg Koch, his son Dylan Koch on drums and Hammond B3 specialist Toby Lee Marshall. At the heart of this organ trio is a blues sensibility - but Koch's compositions are an amalgam of rock, funk, jazz and country served up with heavy grooves and dynamic improvisations delivered with no small dose of humor and occasional wild abandon.

Milwaukee native Greg Koch has forged a successful career as a guitar player's guitarist. He has been called "fiendishly talented" by author and former editor- in-chief of Guitar Player Magazine Tom Wheeler and "scary good" by guitar phenom Joe Bonamassa. In addition to his 15 releases on multiple record labels which feature his unique take on a variety of American guitar styles and his versatile compositions, Koch is widely known for his lengthy tenure as an international ambassador for Fender Guitars which listed him in their "Top Ten Unsung Guitarists" on Fender.com. He is also a best-selling author and video instructor for music publisher Hal Leonard. Greg is a contributing columnist for a variety of guitar magazines including Guitar Player Magazine which listed Greg's "Chief's Blues" in their "40 Badass Blues Solos You Must Hear" and Premier Guitar. For the last few years Greg is renowned for his wildly popular internet videos (which number in the thousands with views exceeding 50 million) originating from the legendary Colorado guitar shop Wildwood Guitars.

Dylan Koch gravitated to the drums early on in his life using kitchen utensils to play along with music as soon as he could walk. After digesting an early diet of Ginger Baker, Keith Moon, Mitch Mitchell and John Bonham, Dylan was mentored by the legendary Tom Brechtlein (Chick Corea/Robben Ford). In high school Dylan participated in the Jazz Institute at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music and furthered his studies at the McNally Smith School of Music in the Twin Cities. While still in his teens he performed with young guitar guns Tallan Noble Latz and Jared James Nichols and has performed alongside his father with such artists as Robben Ford, Little Feat's Paul Barrere, Jon Cleary, David Grissom, Roscoe Beck and Malford Milligan. Dylan was recently nominated for drummer of the year by the Wisconsin Area Music Awards (WAMI).

Toby Lee Marshall's screaming B3 is the perfect compliment to the musical stew that is the Koch songbook. Hailing from the Twin Cities area he came from a musical family, playing piano for years until falling under the spell of the sound of the organ while at a baseball game at age seven. His fascination for the Hammond B3 took hold after his Dad took him to see Steve Cherewan playing with Dr. Mambo's Combo at their legendary residency at Bunker's in Minneapolis. Steve mentored Toby in the ways of the B3 and he hit the ground running landing a gig with bluesman Lonnie Brooks while still a teen. He would go on to travel the world as a member of Bernard Allison's band. After taking a hiatus to spend some family time, Toby is returning to music with a vehemence and the Koch-Marshall format gives him a long leash to let his freak flag fly, providing groovy bass lines, sinuous chordal work and incendiary solos.

The trio blends the explosive guitar manipulations of Greg, the groove-centric, power-pocket playing of his son Dylan on drums (who share many telepathic musical moments) and the glorious, Hammond organ stylings of the uber-talented Toby Marshall, Greg’s compositions are properly portrayed in the blues drenched, funk, chicken-fried, gospelly, jazz-rock panorama in which they were conceived.

The Nielsen Trust - a Midwest musical legacy of memories, dreams and nightmares. The Nielsen Trust promises an intimate look at the life and songs of a family that isn't completely f#*ked up. A very special evening of songs and stories from the uniquely colorful world of growing up Nielsen. Not the American Osbournes.

"Hey, have you heard about that rockin' new family band, the Nielsen Trust?"

"The Nelson Trust? You mean like Ozzie and Harriet? Ricky? They're not what I
would call rockin'."

"Rick, yes, but not Nelson, Nielsen. Rick Nielsen, y'know, the guy from Cheap Trick? He and two of his sons have formed a side band. It's gonna be cool! Like the Griswolds on acid."

"Wait, doesn't Cheap Trick tour all the time? And isn't Daxx Nielsen their drummer? And doesn't Miles Nielsen have a band of his own? And isn't Miles'wife Kelly a singer and songwriter as well? How will they find the time?"

True, true, true and true. But that's not enough to slow the hyper-musical Nielsen family. The Nielsen Trust, established 2019, connects the family's generations -- a sign of trust -- for very special evenings of songs and stories from the uniquely colorful world of growing up Nielsen.

Rick promises "a Midwest musical legacy -- memories, dreams and nightmares"and notes, ominously, "The Nielsens are not your warm, fuzzy and cuddly musical group. We're not the American Osbournes."Or, as Miles puts it, "a way to experience music and stories between a father and his family, an intimate look at the life and songs of a family that isn't completely f#*ked up."

The back story: Miles and Daxx started off playing together in Harmony Riley, a Midwest quintet which released albums in 1999 and 2002. Then Daxx went off to drum for surf legend Dick Dale, Brandi Carlile and others. He got the "you are needed" call from Cheap Trick in 2010.

Big brother Miles played bass for Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons and then launched his solo career with the Rusted Hearts. His fourth album, Ohbahoy, has just been released, and that's not counting the EP, Weep & Willow, he and his wife Kelly Steward issued in 2016. She has a new album, Tales and Tributes of the Deserving and Not So, as well. Rick, well, he's been playing a hundred-plus Cheap Trick shows a year all over the world, while writing and recording non-stop. So, with characteristic Midwest industry (and the encouragement of wife and mom Karen Nielsen), the four are testing family bonds by adding another musical project to their busy lives.

Actually, Daxx says, music has the power to intensify family ties. "Miles and I played in a band together for years and built an amazing chemistry. Rick and I have now played together for years and have also formed a great bond. When the three of us are all together it's going to be incredible."

With Miles out front as singer and storyteller, they're working up lesser-known songs from Rick's enormous Cheap Trick catalogue, adding some Miles and Kelly originals, choice covers and, who knows?, maybe writing some new tunes together. Asked for some titles, Miles says they're thinking about such Trick tunes as "Can't Hold On," "Didn't Know I Had It," "Fan Club" and "On Top of the World."

The goal, Miles says, is to play a dozen shows a year, accentuate the rock side ("dynamic and delicate") more than he normally does and give the family legend a chance to play in a band that he doesn't have to lead. Miles and Kelly will bring their three teenagers along to ensure that the binding of generations and the handing down of traditions continues for a long time to come. For the fans, the shows offer an intimate connection, an invitation to the Nielsen world, which may be rock star glamorous from the outside, but inside the checkerboard there's a family just like yours and mine. Well, maybe not just like...

Rick once had the fretboard of a red Les Paul Jr. inlaid with the words "You know you like it." That didn't sound too trustworthy a sentiment. But this time, with the Nielsen Trust, you know he means it.

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