JOHN ALEX MASON JOOK JOINT THUNDERCLAP
Released: Feb 15, 2011
Label:Naked Jaybird Music
Format:[email protected]


Colorado’s John-Alex Mason specializes in a fuzz-friendly brand of swamp-boogie blues. It’s infectiously energetic, which very nearly compensates for his not-terribly-strong vocals. On songs like “My Old Lonesome Home” and “Rolled and Tumbled”, Mason’s scratch-tastic licks carve out a sonic landscape that is both comfortably familiar and refreshingly new.
So far, so good, so safe. What elevates this album far above the ordinary run of blues-guitar offerings are the many incidental flourishes that Mason grafts onto the basic blues template. “Come So Long” and “Riding On” both feature short, pithy raps from Cody Burnside (grandson of blues legend RL Burnside), which against all odds mesh seamlessly with the tunes. African instruments like djembe and balafone percolate throughout several tracks, adding layers of percussive interest, notably in “Riding On” and “Free”. With these global sounds added to the country accents of harmonica, mandolin and fiddle, the sonic palette grows richer song by song. Recommended. 


Tracklist:

01. My Old Lonesome Home 
02. Gone So Long (feat. Cody Burnside)
03. More Than Wind
04. Riding On (feat. Cody Burnside)
05. Rolled and Tumbled 
06. Diamond Rain
07. Signifying Monkey
08. Free 
09. Write Me A Few Of Your Lines
10. Whisper