Tomas Doncker – Tomas Doncker’s Band Howlin’ Wolf EP
01. Spoonful
02. Evil
03. Blind Melon Morpheus (missed the train)
04. Shook Down
05. Smokestack Lightning
06. Back Door Man
He’s been on the NYC music scene for more than 20 years. He worked with the likes of YOKO ONO and BONNIE RAITT. With such a fruitful music career, you may think that it’s time for TOMAS DONCKER to call it a day? Not a chance! This guy is on a mission to bring something he calls ‘Global Soul’ to the world. Influenced by numerous sources, including East and West Africa, and the Caribbean, Doncker describes Global Soul as ‘the sound of our collective conscious.’ In 2010 he brought his Global Soul sound to China as a headlining act at the Shanghai Folk Festival, performing in front of over 100,000 people as part of the Shanghai World Expo. In addition to this, Doncker will be doing 11 performances at NYC’s Summer Stage concert series this year.
The veteran singer/songwriter, producer and guitarist is showing no signs of slowing down as he and his band is set to further push Global Soul to the masses by putting together an EP entitled, Tomas Doncker’s Band Howlin Wolf, a heartfelt tribute to no other than the American blues legend HOWLIN’ WOLF. The album is set for release on 2 July through Doncker’s record label True Groove Records.
So what to expect from this 5 track album? Well, I guess the clue is in the title – nothing more than good old fashion American blues with gritty guitars, the sweet magic of the harmonica, topped off with gusty, growling vocals. Back Door Man possesses all of these ‘grittiness’ of that good old American blues, where TOMAS DONCKER adds my-baby-has-left-me tone to his usual gutsy vocals.
TOMAS DONCKER adds a bit of fire to the album, as he puts his own spin on the blues with Spoonful, Evil and Smokestack Lightning. Although these tracks have all the qualities of a classic blues production, there is a strong element of psychedelic rock, which adds the perfect amount of raciness, edginess and grooviness in each of the songs.
Overall, Tomas Doncker’s Band Howlin’ Wolf makes a really pleasant listening which will hit the spot for true fans of American blues. If HOWLIN’ WOLF was alive today, he would be truly humbled by Doncker’s tribute.