Jason Elmore & Hoodoo Witch - Champagne Velvet (2016)

Based out of Dallas-TX, "Jason Elmore & Hoodoo Witch" is a high-energy trio that blends jump blues, hard-hitting rock, vintage soul/r&b, and traces of 60’s country into a unique-but-familiar sound that always maintains the essence of the blues while simultaneously offering a fresh take on the genre. The band is comprised of Jason Elmore on guitar and vocals, Brandon Katona on bass, and Mike Talbot on drums. These cats are uncommonly seamless in their ability to tailor their performance to suit the venue and demographic, without compromising the integrity of their mission, which is to give 110% with every single performance, regardless of whether it’s 2 people or 2,000.

Having grown up with an obsession for all genres of American roots music, Jason Elmore is remarkable in his ability to appeal to fans of all genres of music with his virtuoso-level guitar playing, soulful and powerful old-school vocals, and keen sense of songwriting. It is common to see an artist excel at one of those three things, but Elmore is uncanny in his ability to express himself with an original and unique voice as a guitarist, singer, and songwriter. All one needs to do is watch him play live one time in order to have a good understanding of how all of these different genres of music have a common thread when it comes to eliciting an emotional response from the listener and taking them to that special place where only the music exists and the troubles of the world are temporarily put on hold. The band is currently set to release their 3rd full album, titled ‘Champagne Velvet’ in September 2016 on the Underworld Records label. The album is a slight change of direction from the band’s 2010 album “Upside Your Head” and 2013’s “Tell You What”, both of which featured a heavy emphasis on Texas rock and blues.

‘Champagne Velvet’ sees the band exploring their soul, blues, and country roots more in-depth than before with a sense of excitement and fire that is uncommon in the contemporary blues scene. It is a throwback to 1950’s jump blues, rockabilly, and Memphis soul. The guitar tones are cleaner, the bass and drums interplay with more dynamics and the grooves jump like a kangaroo on a hot sidewalk. All 13 original songs flow with an abundance of melody, harmony, and clever lyrics. At the same time, there is just enough variety to quench the thirst of fans of the more rock-oriented material of past albums. ‘Champagne Velvet’ is like a road trip from Dallas, TX to Memphis, TN with a quick stop by the West Coast on the way. It perfectly captures the essence of the band doing what they do best, which is bringing unrestrained boogie to the party.