New Releases! Igor Prado Band and My Own Holiday

Available February 17th! Pre-Order Now! Visit our online store or call 818-907-1600

Igor Prado Band - Way Down South Click here FEATURING: Kim Wilson - Sugaray Rayford Rod & Honey Piazza Mud Morganfield - Lynwood Slim Mitch Kashmar - Junior Watson and more! “Keeping the Blues Alive” is the ubiquitous mantra that’s become the battle cry of the modern-day blues community. To those unaccustomed with this tenet, the phrase can often imply that this enduring, beautiful and quintessential American music is hastily approaching its twilight years. One merely has to cast an eye southward, towards the Equator in São Paulo, Brazil, to find evidence that the blues is still a vital and thriving form of soulful communication, courtesy of the strikingly talented and notably youthful quartet, the Igor Prado Band. At 11-years old, Igor Prado fell in love with the guitar. Completely self-taught, this promising lefty learned to play a right-handed guitar upside down. Together with his brother Yuri Prado on drums, these two siblings embarked on a remarkable 15-year journey beginning in 2000, which encompasses numerous recording and production credits, in addition to sharing stages with many of the idioms most revered veterans. Bolstered by the auspicious talents of bassist Rodrigo Mantovani and saxophonist Denilson Martins, the Igor Prado Band eventually came to the attention of the well-traveled and finely-tuned ear of American blues harmonica player and vocalist, Lynwood Slim. A lifetime bond forged out of mutual respect and admiration was formed, culminating in the expertly crafted and highly acclaimed 2010 release, Brazilian Kicks on Delta Groove. Today, the Igor Prado Band has become one of the most popular and in demand blues outfits for any artist seeking mature and authoritative, yet sympathetic backing support in South America. Way Down South represents the very best of these frequent collaborations with recording sessions gleaned from south of the border and spanning 2011-2014. Here Igor and the boys are joined by a myriad of talent assembled from the Delta Groove roster and beyond including Kim Wilson, Sugaray Rayford, Mud Morganfield, Mitch Kashmar, Rod and Honey Piazza, Junior Watson, Monster Mike Welch, Wallace Coleman, Omar Coleman, JJ Jackson, Randy Chortkoff and Raphael Wressnig. Of special note are two songs featuring the late, great Lynwood Slim performing memorable renditions of Lowell Fulson’s Baby Won’t You Jump with Me and Paul Gayten’s You Better Believe It. Although it may be a long way from São Paulo to America, the passion and dedication found within the grooves of these recordings will most certainly make the distance between these two locales feel that much closer. Way Down South dispenses any notion that the blues is not only alive, but doing quite well indeed, thanks in large part to this incredible Brazilian ensemble. Igor Prado Band - Way Down South Click here My Own Holiday - Reason to Bleed Click here Don’t think of My Own Holiday as a blues/rock band, even though the duo of Joey Chrisman and Nick Bartolo claim that as a fair description. Don’t think of them as a White Stripes / Black Keys homage, even though their stripped-down, just-guitar-and-drums instrumentation might lead you to lump them into that category. And don’t think of My Own Holiday as this year’s flavor or a flash in the pan – they’re in it for the long haul. My Own Holiday hails from Lake Arrowhead, CA, an inland resort community far enough away from the superficial glitz and glamour of Los Angeles to have allowed the band to create their own unique sound unpressured by any of the trendy bandwagon jumping that is de rigueur in the showbiz mecca. Vocalist/guitarist Chrisman has been writing original songs since he was in sixth grade, and over the years has honed his craft to create an original voice that incorporates influences from classic rock, post-punk, pure pop, and Dylan-esque folk among others, often infused with a darkness and danger that belies the relatively bucolic surroundings of his upbringing. Drummer Bartolo meshes perfectly with Chrisman’s vision, laying down a rhythmic drive that is both in-the-pocket and dramatic enough to push the music into previously uncharted territory. Their self-described “broken-down” approach to their music emphasizes the propulsive drive and relentless groove at the core of their sound, while at the same time putting the focus on the songwriting. The band’s minimalist approach leaves little opportunity to hide flimsy material behind instrumental gymnastics and gimmickry – without great original songs, little else matters. And My Own Holiday has the ‘great originals’ category sewn up, with songs strikingly evocative of love, loss, hope, longing, sin and redemption – often in a single tune. My Own Holiday distills a large portion of the best that rock music has had to offer over the last half century into a compelling sound that is all their own. You could spend a lot of time picking out all the various influences, but in the end, it would be a pointless exercise, because My Own Holiday doesn’t really sound like anyone else. They’re an original band, with an original vision, and the only way to really ‘get’ them is to listen. That is most decidedly NOT a pointless exercise – in fact, it’s almost guaranteed to pay dividends. My Own Holiday - Reason to Bleed Click here

Delta Groove Music artist: Igor Prado Band - Way Down South - New Release Review

I just received the newest release (February 17, 2015), Way Down South, from Igor Prado Band and Delta Groove All Stars and it's smokin! Opening with Ike Turner's, Matchbox, Sugaray Rayford leads the way on vocal and Prado really romps the guitar. A heavy slung blues, Prado throws stiff riffs and wild trem work making this a terrific opener! John Hunter's, Ride With Me Baby has an easy rock beat with deep blues roots. Kim Wilson has the lead on vocal and Prado shows his fleet fingered guitar work. Yuri Prado on drums and Rodrigo Mantovani on bass keep it tight. Muddy Water's She's Got It, featuring Mud Morganfield on lead vocal sounds like it's right out of 60's Chicago with Ivan Marcio on harp and Donny Nichilo doing a great Otis Spann. Morganfield, Marcio, Nichilo and Prado really do capture Muddy's band sound with a lot of authenticity. Very cool! Lowell Fulsom's Baby Won't You Jump With Me features Ari Borger on piano and Lynwood Slim on vocal with cool jazzy guitar work from Prado and Junior Watson and tight sax work from Denilson Martins. James Lane's, What Have I Done, has a smooth groove led by Mitch Kashmar on vocal and harp. Kashmar really takes a nice romp on his solo as does Ari Borger on piano and Prado shows again that he's got great guitar chops. Jr. Walker and the Allstars' Shake & Fingerpop keep all of the R&B groove of the original with super stinging guitar riffs and lead vocals from Prado, a super bass run by Mantovani. Raphael Wressnig does a super job on B3. On Elmore James' Talk To Me Baby, Rod Piazza takes the mic for lead vocal and harp. Honey Piazza joins in on piano with Prado on lead guitar super charging this track. Excellent! Jerry West's If You Ever Need Me, keeps the original feel of the 60's R&B lead by Kim Wilson on vocal and harp. Very Nice! Joe Tex's You Got What It Takes has a nice twist on the original with Prado and JJ Jackson sharing the vocal lead. Keeping the guitar work tame on this number, Prado's finesse on the fretboard isn't hindered with quiet but cool riffs. Sugaray Rayford's Big Mama Blues has the girth of a Muddy Waters track with Prado and Monster Mike Welch doing the guitar Muddy style. Rayford leading the vocal charge and Borger tickling the keys, this track is right off the Chicago stage. Sweet! Paul Gayten's R&B swing tune You Better Believe It, led by Lynwood Slim on vocal and chased by Borger on piano and Martins on sax make this one really hot number. Prado jumps up and stiff arms the crowd with a flaming guitar solo keeping with the pace of the release. On Jerry West's, Rooster Blues, Wallace Coleman takes the vocal and harp lead and gets right into the Chicago groove. Yuri Prado (drums) keeps this track on a tight leash and Borger lays down a great piano solo. Prado really lets it out on this track proving once again that he can hold his own with just about anyone on the blues circuit. Excellent! Wrapping the release is Omar Coleman's Trying To Do Right with Coleman on vocal and harp. Prado takes the acoustic guitar and shows how powerful the simple instrument can be in the right hands. This is a powerful acoustic track and a great conclusion to a terrific release!

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