Howell Devine - Delta Grooves (2012)

Howell Devine is the kind of blues you don't hear anymore. The raw slide guitar played by Joshua Howell evokes the Mississippi Hill Country greats such as Fred McDowell and R.L. Burnside. The rhythm section of drummer and percussionist Pete Devine (Bo Grumpus and Gaucho) and bassist Safa Shokrai (Rupa & The April Fishes) breaks from the norm in blues, providing rich and complex textures integral to the music rather than a simple backing section for a soloist. The result is a sound which stands in stark contrast to the typical blues heard in bars these days and would more likely be shaking the floors of a Southern juke joint some 70 years ago.