Blues
Before I tell you about possibly the best cd that I have gotten ALL year I need to introduce these dangerous boys.
Steve Arvey on vocals and guitar,
Mark Hoekstra on vocals/harmonica/slide guitar,
Michael Wagner on bass guitar,
Pete Kruse on drums.
Last year I played with a band at the "Little Bar's" New Years gig and the crowd was extra loose and roudy,which by the way spurred us to boogie on down to the next level(really helps when the crowd is dancing on the tables too).Some of the crowd came up after the second set and said that we were playing "Dangerous Music",God forbid it leaving that biker roadhouse and contaminating the general masses.
Well,that is exactly what "West Side Heat" is all about,"Dangerous" roadhouse blues guitar and electric harmonica boogie till dawn music.Steve Arvey and Mark Hoekstra share the spotlight with vocals and Arvey seems to be the lead guitar dude but Mark plays slide guitar on some cuts and harmonica that will make ya go out and howl light a junkyard dog on a full moon.On cut # 3 ,"Mississippi",you would swear that it was Lynyrd Skynyrd before the plane crash.And on cut # 5 you would swear that Kim Wilson the harp player was singing with that deep barroom voice and playing harp.Yeah,this cd kicks some major ass(please forgive my French but this cd needs to be explained the way it was made,no holding back going on there).
I think that Steve Arvey and Mark Hoekstra have been making music together for 18 years now and they are tighter than a Texas tick that has been on the same dog for two years,these fellas have got it seriously going on.This cd was recorded live and the crowd is going berserk all the time,no put on here,they have the crowd in the palm of their hands.These guys are playing like today may possibly be their last,sweat and soul thru and thru.Here are the songs.
This is boogie and slow blues that can only come from VERY seasoned musicians (they look a bit like me,plenty of life's scares and wear'n tear that only comes from living it to the max) but they manage to make it sound completely new,that is what makes this cd so refreshing .Steve Arvey goes off on some guitar solos that would make Muddy and Hound Dog Talyor proud,big fat tone and enuff chops to fill a butcher shop.And oh,when Mark Hoekstra starts wailing on that harp,you can feel the soul of Little Walter and William Clarke swealing up thru him.On the first cut I thought at first that Mark was holding back,it took listening to the whole cd to get where he was coming from,"Less Is More",as the ol' blues guys use to say.But on most songs,he lets go like a busted Hoover Damn,power like a steam locomotive,breathing pure fire people!!!!!!
This cd gets my newly formulated,"Dangerous Music Award", as well as my highest approval rating of (7) Harps to boot.And Mr. Mark Hoekstra gets my coveted "Nasty Harp Award",that's right,we likes our amplified harp on the nasty side,like our "!!!!!". You need this cd to be complete with the Blues Universe,go to this website http://www.stevearvey.com/ and become one with the blues Santa Claus.
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01.Stranded 3.44
02.Fine Line 6.08
03.Mississippi 2.45
04.Oh Lucky 3.30
05.Reconsider Baby 7.37
06.How Do You Spell Love 5.43
07.You're So Fine 3.15
08.Chicken heads 8.39
09.He Knows The Rules 4.40
10.Shake Your Money Maker 7.31
11.Rollin' And Tumblin' 11.38
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