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Reviews:
“Unlike other acts that share these influences (Cream, Led Zepplin), WOODBRAIN doesn’t ape riffs or licks, but funnels its bluesy essence into material that shape shifts as it avoids clichés. …Psychedelic atmospherics…it’s surely Blues, but twisted and skewed by dynamic songs and edgy playing that never take the easy, logical way out. ..(WOODBRAIN) refashion’s the blues while maintaining its innate honesty …those looking for new directions for the blues will welcome WOODBRAIN’s unorthodox yet respectable style. “
Blues Revue Magazine 2010
Select adjectives from Blues Revue Magazine 2010: “Unique …entirely revolutionary…Unpretentious, Rocking…gruff…jazzy…jagged…slanted…winding…unusual…twisted…skewed…dynamic…Psychedelic…ooze…swamps…tornado of intensity…new…unorthodox…respectable. “
Read full Blues Revue show review and cd review here
“One of the best electric blues bands on the scene... Think of Woodbrain as the North Mississippi Allstars of the Pacific Northwest. Certainly this band has enough dynamite in its sound to blow up a small bridge.”
—Jazz.com 2009
“This quartet, like some muddy river, rolls on with dark and hypnotic intent, roiled by the occasional musical eddy. Their free-form explorations of the blues evoke the sounds of the Rev. Gary Davis, R.L. Burnside and Son House, but they play well outside the confines of rural blues.”
—The Oregonian 2009
“Contender in the ‘best thing I’ve heard all year’ stakes... Woodbrain make music within the blues tradition, but are not afraid to diversify and take chances . . . that’s what maybe makes this release so appealing.”
—Blues in the Northwest UK (Ireland) 2009
“An irresistible blend... You see the term “Brave New Blues” bandied about quite a bit, but in this case, it certainly applies. These guys are absolutely fearless, taking the blues in directions where few have ventured.”
—Blues Bytes 2009
“There is no shortage of electric blues-rock in the 21st century, but most of it doesn't have the strongly psychedelic outlook that Portland, OR's Woodbrain bring to Swimming in Turpentine… Swimming in Turpentine has no problem transporting listeners back to that era, and it does so with absorbing results..”
- All Music Guide.com
“Earthy and bluesy yet defiantly intense and diverse…a rollercoaster that slowly makes its way to the summit and boldly plunges forward into sundry territory, twisting and whipping around bends, out of control yet never losing track... a band that approaches the blues from both a new and old perspective in a powerfully original way… People often say that you can't do much more with the blues that hasn't already been done. Woodbrain proves otherwise.”
- Boston Blues Society
"A new form of Blues. A fusion of the Delta and their own haunted visions. In a way, when performing live they're like a classic jam band that can take a song and it's theme on for great lengths, never getting boring in the process.But what ever they are, they're extremely innovative with a sound completely their own....This quartet should be viewed as sculptors, or painters. They're creating a new demension of the blues within our dreams...exhilerating and mind-enchanting...a very new and very exciting vision of the blues"
- Cascade Blues Association, Portland Oregon 2008Joe McMurrian Quartet PROGRESSIVE BLUES 2007
"rich, muddy Delta bottom of blues sources, and onward past the limitations of the form to a more progressive sound, one open to original material as relevant as that of any contemporary, folk-based singer-songwriter...the bluesman’s two recent releases—last year’s studio effort, Rain of Days, and the brand-new Live at the White Eagle—are both truly rewarding listens. Rain’s a quiet, contemplative hour of songs treading through dense emotional territory. McMurrian’s shown impressive growth as a songwriter; his words have become as musical as his guitar playing is lyrical. And there’s an encouraging sense of reach, as though he’s struggling to express something just beyond his language, suggesting more growth to come... Some expansive moments here recall early Fairport Convention at its most atmospheric.."
- Willamette Week music review, jeff Rosenberg Portland Oregon 2007
"This quartet, like some muddy river, rolls on with dark and hypnotic intent, roiled by the occasional musical eddy. Their free-form explorations of the blues evoke the sounds of the Rev. Gary Davis, R.L. Burnside and Son House, but they play well outside the confines of rural blues... With deft and keen interplay, the players spin around McMurrian's core guitar and vocal. The sum is a dark, trancelike sound that easily steals listeners' attention and draws them unforgivingly in..."
Blues to brood by - by Don Campbell, Oregonian 2008
