Rocking the delta blues and roots rock with acoustic guitar, upright bass, and the cajon, Lance Canales & The Flood make me proud to be from California. Born and raised in the San Joaquin Valley, the agricultural heart of central California, Lance has those raw vocals that let you know he knows of what he sings. The real, down-home blues – that’s what I’m talking about. I heard about Lance Canales & The Flood through the blog of photographer Tudor Stanley, who shot this video below as well as the EPK for the trio. The video is a visual treat as well – stark like the emptiness between the notes in the blues. Here is “Clear Eyes, Straight Hands” and “Digging”:
I am in love with the Los Angeles band, La Santa Cecilia, named after the patron saint of music. They play an eclectic fusion of everything soulful – from boleros to rancheros, cumbias to klezmer, folk and jazz/jam to their own unique take on the Beatles. Lead singer La Marisoul is absolutely adorable and on stage is simply fierce – simmering with sultry vocals. Guitar player Gloria Estrada is a complete bad-ass; laid back as cool as any blues cat out there. The guys in the band, all 100% on point: percussionist Miguel Ramirez, drummer Hugo Vargas, Alex Bendana on upright bass, and Jose Carlos on Requinto and accordion. This band is tight – solid and all smooth as can be, each member with their own unique style and coolness.
They are coming up strong this year with songs appearing on shows including Weeds and Entourage, playing SXSW, the Hollywood Bowl, and the GRAMMY block party. They are generating quite a buzz, with veterans of the music biz being blown away by their sound. La Santa Cecilia…I guarantee we will be hearing a lot more of them and thank goodness for that because they are the real deal.
“The blues tells a story. Every line of the blues has a meaning.” ~John Lee Hooker
Ali Farka Touré was born near Timbuktu in Mali, West Africa in 1939. He’s known for his electric guitar style which was his own unique blend of Malian folk styles and American blues. He had a hypnotic droning style often compared to John Lee Hooker, though I find him more similar to the style of North Mississippi bluesman Junior Kimbrough. Below I’ve included videos from both. The world lost Ali in 2006, but his spirit lives on through his music, musicians he influenced, and his son Vieux Farka Touré, who while carrying the seeds of his father’s music, is forging his own musical identity.
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