ONE LOUDER – MISTY BLUES
ONE LOUDER
MISTY BLUES
The new album “One Louder” by Misty Blues is probably one of the best albums around at the moment, between the fantastic voice of Gina Coleman and the extraordinary musicians that have put this disk together it is an piece of art, each song with a different taste of blues in the various shades. In this album they have managed to blend different styles of blues showing the full creativity of the band and they were not wrong at all to do so, with this amazing album give you the taste of all the fantastic styles that blues has to offer.
One Louder is the album that all blues lovers must have and cherish. I’m sure will still be listening to these tracks many years from now.
by Robert James Ucciero - Blues Highway. itMassachusetts based blues band, Misty Blues continue their prodigious recorded output
with possibly their best yet. ‘One Louder’ builds on the success of their previous 10
albums, and offers a bountiful palette of musical colours and styles. Featuring an array of
guest artists, the band are able to call upon the supreme talents of Joe Louis Walker,
Justin Johnson and the voice of Siriusxm Bluesville, Big Llou Johnson.
Misty Blues and lead singer, Gina Coleman, celebrate over two decades of performing
their eclectic blend of original blues; with hints of jazz, funk, soul and tent revival
gospel. Gina and her band have firmly fixed their place on the American blues scene,
having recorded and/or shared the bill with the likes of Charles Neville, Tom Cochrane, Tab
Benoit, John Primer, Albert Cummings, Room Full Of Blues, Michael Powers and most
recently, Joe Louis Walker.
Following on from their critically acclaimed album ‘None More Blues’, Lunaria Records are
thrilled to be releasing the band’s 11th album.
‘One Louder’ will be released on Friday 28th January, 2022
A dynamic band, full of texture and colour; Misty Blues are a group which embody
American blues music. This album is testament to their creative blend of styles, with
songwriting that gives a fresh sound to the genre. Recorded at Building Records Studio in
Marlboro, NY, and mixed by the band’s long standing engineer, Frank Kennedy, ‘One
Louder’ offers a swathe of styles of blues infused originals across its Eleven tracks.
The album opens with the voice of Gina Coleman, backed only by ‘Mavis’, her resonator
guitar. Coleman’s lyrics “It’s a long hard way back home” is testament to the struggles of
musicians getting back on the road after these particularly tough times. The band follow
Coleman’s intro with a solid gospel swing, and for an outfit which has been gigging for as
long as they have, it’s no surprise that they sound as tight as they do.
‘The freshness of this album, in great part, stems from recording the majority of it in a live
format where everyone was in the same room,’ recalls Coleman. ‘Being able to feed off
each other's energy meant we were able to lay down most of the tracks in a one day
marathon session.’
The album continues with the chugging, funky-blues number, ‘Freight Car’ — co-written
by Gina and her son Diego Mongue — and features guest artist, Justin Johnson on guitar.
‘I have been a long standing fan of Justin's as he is also known widely for his cigar-box
playing’, explains Coleman. ‘In fact, I taught myself to play the cigar-box guitar primarily
through use of his comprehensive instructional program entitled "3-string guitar”.’
Johnston provides some tasty fills and a well executed solo. The track concludes with a
ferocious sax solo from Aaron Dean, Johnston’s slide ringing out.
The credits for the album are extensive - Misty Blues are an extended family, with a host
of musicians affectionately known as the “Farm Team”. ‘Although, there is nothing
developing about these professional musicians,’ admits Coleman. ‘They are all
exceptionally skilled artists who stay current with the Misty Blues catalogue, and are able
to seamlessly step in for any of our core members without issue’. What makes each track
stand out is due to Coleman’s experience as a band leader in bringing out the best in each
musician to complement the song.
‘How The Blues Feels’ features the deep, velvet voice of Big Llou Johnson — who also
happens to be the voice of Siriusxm Bluesville. ‘The last time I saw Big Llou was in
Memphis during the 2019 International Blues Challenge when we became finalists,’
remembers Coleman. ‘I’ve always been a big fan of his work and it was a pleasure to have
involved with this project.’
‘This Life We Live’ is a neat, hip-shake boogie number. With the scratchy rock ’n’ roll
guitar from Seth Fleischmann (who is also credited as co-writer), and Chris Rand stepping
in to provide some bottom end on Baritone Sax, this is big band track will get the crowd
dancing.
Despite being the primary songwriter, Coleman has always called upon her band members
to bring their individual ideas and sounds to the creative process. ‘I write most of our
songs,’ explains Gina. ‘I bring the lyrics and a simple musical structure to the band and
then the guys add their ideas to bring the song to life’.
Coleman’s vocals takes centre stage on ‘Birch Tree’. ‘I love singing the slower tempo
“grinders”,’ admits Coleman. ‘I love the freedom of where they allow me to take my voice.’
Coleman’s deep voice resonates over the moody soundscape created by the simple cigar-
box guitar, and the interweaving sax and muted trumpet.
’Leave my Home’ is a funk fueled rocker. Coleman’s voice is commanding, the rhythm
section solid; the track ramps up with the stabbing brass section and biting organ, Dean
and Rand sparring on Alto and Bari.
Coleman sings the blues on ‘Hit You Back’, and the “zydeco” foot tapper, ‘Seal of Fate’
features the nimble playing of Benny Kohn on Piano, and long standing Misty Blues “farm
hand”, David Vittone on Accordion.
Misty Blues is a family affair, with Gina’s son Diego Monque stepping in on bass duties. His
funky feel on ‘I’m A Grinder’ is a particular highlight, giving this track its smokey groove.
Fleischmann gets rocky with a steamy guitar solo, and bassist Bill Patriquin switches over
to trumpet to provide a blistering solo.
‘Do My Thing’ features keyboardist Benny Kohn on vocals, and who is also credited as
songwriter. This Allan Toussaint inspired tune has a cool as ice groove, provided by an
expanded percussion section. Kohn’s reedy organ playing is drenched in New Orleans feel
and the sassy backing vocals are a pleasing counterpoint to Kohn’s lead.
The album concludes with ‘Take A Long Ride’, (originally releases as a single in July,
2021) and features guest artists, Joe Louis Walker on Guitar.
‘The collaboration came about from an interview on Danny Coleman's radio show ‘Got The
Blues’,’ recalls Coleman. ‘Danny asked me who my favourite current blues artists are, and I
mentioned Joe Louis Walker. Danny said he had a long standing friendship with J.L.W. and
I immediately replied, “Next time you speak to Mr. Walker, let him know that Gina Coleman
would love to record a song with him”.’
‘Take A Long Ride’ is a superb pairing between an established blues icon, and a tight
band who have been playing together longer than many of the most well known groups.
Walker’s guitar adds a rich dimension to the band’s sound, juxtaposed with a blistering sax
solo from Aaron Dean and the swirling electric piano of Benny Kohn, to create a
psychedelic masterpiece.
‘It was an absolute pleasure and blessing to work with someone with such a long and rich
blues pedigree’, adds Coleman. ‘Joe’s scorching 24-bar guitar solo echoes and captures
the anguish I intended to express in this song.’
‘One Louder’ showcases the talents of a band which just keeps getting better. ‘We are
ready and eager to bring our music to an even wider audience,’ says Coleman. ‘We hope
to get on the line-up of some larger festivals, and do some international touring. We will
continue to write music and further develop our storytelling skills as we expose more
people to the richness of our genre.’ It seems the sky's the limit for Misty Blues.
ALBUM TRACK LISTING:
1. A LONG HARD WAY
2. FREIGHT CAR (FEAT. JUSTIN JOHNSON)
3. HOW THE BLUES FEELS (FEAT. BIG LLOU JOHNSON)
4. THIS LIFE WE LIVE
5. BIRCH TREE
6. LEAVE MY HOME
7. HIT YOU BACK
8. SEAL OF FATE
9. I'M A GRINDER
10. DO MY THING
11. TAKE A LONG RIDE
ALL SONGS: WRITTEN BY GINA COLEMAN
EXCEPT: TRACK 2 (COLEMAN/MONGUE) TRACK 3 (COLEMAN/MORAN) TRACK 4
(COLEMAN/FLEISCHMANN) TRACK 10 (KOHN)
BAND LINE-UP:
GINA COLEMAN — LEAD VOCALS, CIGARBOX GUITAR, GUITAR 7 PERCUSSION
BENNY KOHN — KEYS, VOCALS
AARON DEAN — ALTO SAX, TENOR SAX & VOCALS
SETH FLEISCHMANN — GUITAR
BILL PATRIQUIN — BASS, TRUMPET & VOCALS
ROB TATTEN — DRUMS & VOCALS
DIEGO MONGUE — BASS
FEATURED GUESTS:
JUSTIN JOHNSON — GUITAR TRACK 2
BIG LLOU JOHNSON — VOCALS TRACK 3
JOE LOUIS WALKER — GUITAR TRACK 11
ADDITIONAL MUSICIANS:
YAHUBA GARCIA — PERSUSSION TRACKS 10
BOB STANNARD — HARP TRACK 3
DAVID VITTONE - ACCORDION TRACKS 8
CHRIS RAND — BARITONE SAX TRACKS 4,6 & 8
WENDY LIPP — VOCALS TRACK 1
REBECCA MATTSON — VOCALS TRACK 1
KATHY RYAN — VOCALS TRACK 1
https://www.mistybluesband.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDG8l5h4v5u3i_esdhPWK6Q
