Cascade Blues Music Reviews Hillstomp, One Word Music Review Index

Music Review Reprint from the
May, 2004 BluesNotes
By Greg Johnson

• Graverobber's Blues
• John Henry
• Nope
• Roustabout
• Shake 'Em On Down
• Goin' Down South
• Lucy's Lament
• Flood Blues
• Cottonwood
• Landlord Blues
• Long Haired Doney
  

By: Greg Johnson

    While standing amidst a packed venue with a college-aged audience screaming and dancing to the pulsating sounds of Hillstomp, a friend leaned over and whispered, “Don’t tell them they’re listening to the Blues, otherwise they might decide they don’t like it.” But, after thinking about this statement for a short while, it occurred to me that regardless of whether they know now that the music is firmly grounded in the Blues, it has evolved under a guise that this age of crowd happens to be enjoying to no end. And, with bands such as Hillstomp, The North Mississippi All-Stars, Jimbo Mathis, and others, the genre will survive and a new breed has been developed. But, like the listening buyers of three-to-four decades back, they just might take a look at the names associated with some of the songs listed on the CD. There they may notice songwriting credit given to folk like Mississippi Fred McDowell or R.L. Burnside, and then decide to delve a little deeper and reach others like Joe Callicott or Muddy Waters. At that point, it’s begun to go full circle and this, by however means it has come about, is a good thing.

    Hillstomp is quite a unique pair of young musicians. Henry Kammerer plays the guitar in a self-taught style using his forefinger to place his slide while he uses a plastic pick on the forefinger of his strumming hand. Drummer John Johnson sits behind a collection of five-gallon food drums attached to a bass drum and snares, pounding out the hypnotic beat with plastic sticks. Yes, it is unorthodox, but it works and damn, if it doesn’t sound good, too!

    They’ve come a long way in just the short time they’ve been performing. It wasn’t too long ago that they ran sets of completely covered tunes, but with the self-release of their debut recording, “One Word,” the duo has developed into a legitimate songwriting team as well. The original numbers hold all the potency found in the music of the North Mississippi Hill Country, with special note given to the upbeat raucousness of “Graverobber’s Blues” and “Landlord Blues.” Noteworthy also is the exceptional harmonica work from both David Lipkind and Philip Guttman, adding a third voice to the pair’s fierce licks.

    The one exception to the concept behind the totality of the album is the nearly a cappella piece, “Lucy’s Lament,” with an Appalachian flavor and which features the guest voices of the alt-Country band, Moonshine Hangover, mixed with brief instrumentation of mandolin by Kris Stuart and hand-clapping from the whole group.

    “One Word” is a terrific first effort from a band that has the potential to bring a whole new generation of listeners into the focus of the Blues.

© 2004 Cascade Blues Association