reviewsarchiv 720

Just imagine deep down in the south of the United States, somewhere inside the swamps of Louisiana or Georgia, where the voodoo magic is still alive, where the old Bluesman is still talking about past days, playing his old melancholic harp, - there where it seems, time has stood still - in a fictive way of course. That's where the band Delta Moon comes from, holding up their passion to keep this Blues alive and transfer it into a modern world, a world, who's generation only can guess, how it was back then.....
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Delta Moons is Atlanta, Georgia, next door to Louisiana in the Southern States of the USA. And it is a modern city, not having much in common with Uncle Tom's Cabin from back then. It's one of these high tech places, just like New York or Los Angeles. Atlanta is the home of Coca Cola, of CNN and of Peachtrees. It owns the third biggest airport in the States and is 'the' airtraffic knot in America. But somehwere between all these things, it still is there this imaginary occult swamp fog with it's melancholic music. And the survival of this music is not thanks to the Ku-Klux-Klan, but thanks to bands just like Delta Moon.
It is indeed sad enough, when such a band is telling you, that the ground back home has become dry.But they say, that they've found a new ground for this kinda Blues here in Europe, a continent with many culture perspectives, which most of them are much older then any american evolution, but definately not what's up to the Blues.

Funnily the musical head of Delta Moon, Tom Gray, says, that his ideas to their music actually evolve out of an inspiration he again takes from bands like the Rolling Stones. And these are true english men from here in Europe as we all know. But stretching out a little further, then you check out,l that Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have got their inspiration from old Bluesmen from the United States. Well and so the magic circle is closing, reminding me on a saying John Lennon did once. He said: 'Music always goes in circles, no matter what - on and on and all over again".
Tom Gray is living his philosophy in his own way, and this almost a life time long. He has written songs for Cindy Lauper and Manfred Mann and others in the past and had been a musician his entire life long. But first the meeting with Mark Johnson has created the magic sparkle, the one, which gives the Blues of Delta Moon this special little something.
The sun wasn't always shining bride for Tom, but he learned out of this and got much more relaxed in things. And this experience is reflecting in the current and seventh band album 'Black Cat Oil', as this one is a little more quiet and calm. By the way the songwriter team Gray and Johnson is joined by bassist Franherr Joseph and drummer Marlon Patton, who are making the line up complete.

Delta Moon have now come over for the fourth time across the big pond, just to make sure, that their illusions of the new home of the Blues has become true. And apart from the fact, that we do not understand this entirely, we of course are looking forward to catch up with this little piece of musical art. giving us the feeling, we are the last hope for the Blues, before it is put to rest.
But mind me, it's not dead yet. And this Blues is working itselves with all it's love for details and much nostalgica throughout the current european club landscape.
But it ain't that - the Blues, working itselvs with all the luv for details and much nostalgica but also with a breeze of fresh air throughout the european club landscape. And thanks to the fact, that Delta Moon has become a name meanwhile, at least within those certain fan circles, they do own a rather high level of some sort of quality echo. And that's why our Village in Habach, Bavaria in Germany is pretty much crowded tonight.
No need for a setlist at Delta Moon, as the songs come along as the current mood tells 'em. though the priority is surely put onto the new disc 'Black Cat Oil', it's smooth deep sense title track, but also the beautiful 'Blues In A Bottle' where the slide guitars free themselves.

But it is also this special vibe in Tom Gray's voice, giving the blues of Delta Moon this special little something. No, his vocals ain't no acrobatic monster jump between several octaves, but it is more or less this melodramatic monotony, giving you the impression of this lonely crossroad in the heat of nowhere. There were the old Bluesman has made his contract with the Voodoo master, - there where he had sold his soul, - there where he's waiting to be picked up.....

But if you push this fata morgana, lasting 160 minutes with a break inbetween, aside, then we are stilll here inside the small livingroom of our Village, which is still more comfortable than a - from god forgotten crossroad somewhere in Nirvana. But again this illusion is fading straight away from our minds, when Delta Moon start off to their individual version of Bo Diddley's 'Who Do You Love'. However it's a fact, that this tune within all the new and old tunes fo Delta Moon getting mixed with the Blues provide this special mixture what we call Swamp Rock. Going hand in hand with the individuality, Tom Gray and Mark Johnson put onto the whole cocktail, an very own Kamasutra with thausands of different positions is developing, so rich in Variety, that the true Kamasutra looks rather poor, compared to this.
Well, even the longest sizzling passion comes to an end, and the final contains the slogan - one more song.
It's late, time to go, whereby the imaginary breath of voodoo is covering the velvet darkness which is left from the event. Our Delta Moon are vanishing again behind a cloud, just to stray hope for beeing back in a not too far away future. Because one thing is sure, we here in Germany would love to see this moon rising again so that it can shine onto the new crossroad, the Blues has found over here.....
http://www.deltamoon.com/