Participating bands/artists 2009

Timo Gross

In his energy loaded concerts he celebrates in an "earthy and sensitive voice" (Bluesmagazine France) his own musical interpretation of blues and blue moods, somewhere in between the Mississippi Delta and New Orleans, in between shuffle and funk, traditionally-minded and modern at the same time. In a kind of magic way his voice and guitar form an energetic and emotional unified whole. This is a band that has lived, starved and partied together – a band that preaches the blues in new interpretations but always true to its roots and soul.

The band: Timo Gross (vocal, guitars), Michael Siegwart (drums), Frowin Ickler (bass)

Richie Arndt & The Bluenatics

In 1994 - after ten years as a professional musician with the Top 40 band Skydogs – Richie Arndt recalls his favourite music as a young guy: blues and blues rock, and together with Frank Boestfleisch on drums he forms the band Richie Arndt & the Bluenatics. Since 2002 Jens-Ulrich Handreka completes the band on bass. All three band members can look back on a distinguished musical background which stretches far beyond blues music.

Like Hendrix, Cream, ZZ Top or Stevie Ray Vaughan having three piece bands, the three musicians of the Bluenatics easily and convincingly present their music, too. Nowadays Richie Arndt and his Bluenatics find themselves in Germany’s top league of blues and roots rock.

The band: Richie Arndt (vocal, guitars), Frank Boestfleisch (drums), Jens-Ulrich Handreka (bass)

Hootin' the Blues

Hootin' The Blues from Münster are ever-present in Europe's and of course Germany's acoustic blues scene since 1988. During those 21 years – still in their original line up today – they performed in clubs and festivals all over Germany and in many other European countries. The trio is known for its "good time hillbilly blues music" spiced with elements of ragtime, western swing and jazz. Their shows are always varied and colourful, they play 34 acoustic instruments and all three of them sing in harmony. All of this is presented on stage with lots of fun and on a high musical level.

The band: Gerd Gorke (vocals, harp), Günther Leifeld-Strikkeling (vocals, guitar, banjo, dobro, mandolin, lapsteel), Rupert Pfeiffer (vocals, guitars, dobro)

Bluesm@il

Bluesm@il are Ulrich Axler on bass, Ferdi Peters, one of Germany’s blues pioneers and drummer for years with "Drittes Ohr", Alfons Krause (guitar and founder of the band), Rüdiger Voigt (vocals, harp and accordion) and Frank Schedukat on piano. Bluesm@il always present their blues shows with great skills and passion.

They perform traditional blues in their own way – sometimes they impressively present their blues stories in their German mother tongue. They mainly perform in northern Germany, having played quite some clubs and festivals and enjoying the privilege of accompanying "Honeyboy" Edwards and Louisiana Red several times.

The band: Alfons Krause (guitar), Rüdiger Voigt (vocals, harp, accordion), Ulrich Axler (bass), Ferdi Peters (drums), Frank Schedukat (piano)

Blues Blend

Amazingly it was their first CD which Blues Blend was awarded for as "Beste Bluesband" by Deutscher Rock- und Popmusikverband in 2000. The band interprets the term "traditional blues" as broad and open as possible. So on stage they dig deep into the history of blues: they play everything from rhythm’n’blues of the late 40s and boogie woogie to New Orleans grooves, soul music and Chicago blues. The five musicians from Frankfurt/Main are well known for their dynamic stage show. Be it in a small club or on a big festival, the band will surely rock the house!

The band: Reinhard Bassenge (vocal, guitar), André Huthmann (piano), Henning Eichler (harp), Jörn Bösel (bass), Thomas Frömming (drums, vocal)

Georg Schroeter & Marc Breitfelder

For 19 years Georg Schroeter & Marc Breitfelder are ever-present as a duo on stages all over Germany and the whole of Europe. Having more than 2000 joint performances on their back, they know each other's way of playing very well, but nevertheless improvisation is still the trademark of their performances. They are working hard to build up emotions, put some kind of musical spell on their audiences and make them feel the magic of their music. Their program is varied with many own compositions and presents driving boogie woogie tunes and emotional blues songs; it impressively reflects the different facets of life reaches far beyond blues and boogie.

Georg Schroeter (vocals, piano), Marc Breitfelder (harp)

Bernd Rinser & Ron Fröde

Their concerts are musical walkabouts with a genius mixture of original and rousing blues, earthy swamp rock and sometimes almost avant-garde miniatures. Bernd Rinser's dark voice fits perfectly with his magic songs, which reflect the dark and hard sides of life, but show as well its promising and gentle sides in all their nuances.

Bernd Rinser (vocals, acoustic guitar, acoustic slide guitar, harmonicas, foot tambourine), Ron Fröde (drums)

Down Home Percolators

The Down Home Percolators perform traditional blues from the 20s to the 50s – in an authentic sound but with own interpretations as well, with respect to the origins but always rousing and with lots of passion and fun at the same time. Their last CD "Homebrew" has been awarded with the "Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik" (Prize of "German Record Industry").

Klaus "Mojo" Kilian (vocal, harp, guitar), Bernd Simon (vocal, guitar)

The Juke Joint Pimps

For about four years now, the Juke Joint Pimps have been shaking the stages in ten different countries all over Europe. That two man band consists of the singing multi instrumentalist Mighty Mike and T-Man on guitar. They present a raw mixture of West Memphis blues, R & B and gospel music. Their weird "pimp" outfit and big talk on stage combined with their truly deep blues feeling guarantees a powerful, one-of-a-kind stage show with lots of fun and entertainment.

Mighty Mike (drums, harp, vocal), T-Man (guitar)

T. Leino Band (Finland)

Tomi Leino is a great blues singer, harp player and guitarist from Helsinki, Finland. Being a self taught musician, he has spent most of his life listening to and playing the blues. He has a first rate band with excellent musicians. Tomi Leino plays straight forward blues with a feeling and lays down grooves that rock the house from intimate clubs to festival stages.

The band: Tomi Leino (vocals, harp, guitar), Jonni Seppälä (guitar), Kari Karpo (bass), Juppo Paavola (drums)

Sharpnotes (Sweden)

In the summer of 2006, five friends from Stockholm got together and discovered that they all had something in common - the love for blues and roots music. Sharpnotes became the result of this passion. The band, influenced by people like Magic Sam and Ray Charles, performs a mix of original music as well as covers. With focus on energy and rythm Sharpnotes does not only entertain, they are vital prof of that the blues is alive and well. 2009 second placed of the "Janne Rosenqvist Memorial Award 2009".

The band: Verner Westlund (vocals), John Bernström (guitars), Mattias Lindström (piano, organ) Carl Greder (bass), Magnus Olsson (drums)

Latvian Blues Band (Latvia)

The roots of the Latvian Blues Band (LBB) go back to year 1997, when three young Latvian guys decided to form a band. They started out by listening to different blues masters, such as Elmore James, Robert Johnson, Howlin' Wolf and Little Walter. While working hard on their blues skills, LBB received first local and international recognition by participating in several music festivals in Latvia and Lithuania.

In the beginning of 2000, Johnny V, a well known Canadian blues player, came to Riga to record his CD "Blues Party" together with LBB. Johnny V also helped LBB to find their way to Canada, where they participated in several blues festivals and played in different blues clubs. LBB has been on tours in Croatia, Greece Poland, Lithuania and Spain. In 2005, LBB went to Chicago, where they played at the "Chicago Blues Festival" and several Chicago blues clubs.

LBB has performed with more than 150 blues stars, including Bob Margolin, Carey Bell, John Primer, Phil Guy, Louisiana Red, Duke Robillard, Joanna Connor, Wayne Baker Brooks, Bruce Katz, Studebaker John, Sugar Ray Norcia, Al Copley and many more.

The band: Janis Bukovskis (guitar, vocal), Rolands Saulietis (drums, back vocal), Reinis Ozolins (bass, back vocal), Artis Locmelis (sax), Nauris Strezs (trombone)

J.J. Band (Poland)

Within three years, J.J.Band has developed into one of Poland's best blues groups, the winner of many festival awards. In 2003 they issued their first CD Good Day For The Blues, and in 2004 they were back with Searching For The Blues. Both albums became the CDs of the year (2003 and 2004) in the annual TWOJ BLUES magazine readers' poll.

In the same poll J.J.Band was honored the title of the band of the year 2003 and 2004. Jacek Jaguś is one of the best Polish guitarists and Bartek Łęczycki is the most highly respected Polish harmonica player, both musicians have got many honorable awards.

They tour extensively throughout Poland and abroad. Their shows are overflowing with electrifying power and joy. They play a combination of their original tunes from the last CD and their versions of blues standards and other songs. They performed on the same stage as, among others: Lee Hooker Jr., Shemekia, Copeland, Little Charlie and the Nightcats, Otis Grand and Walter Trout. Jacek Jaguś, the band leader, was invited by Phil Guy (a Brother of the legendary Buddy Guy) to tour around Poland together.

The band: Jacek "Jogi" Jaguś (voval, guitar), Bartek Łęczycki (harp), Piotr Michalak (piano, hammond), Rafał "Kassa" Kassaraba (bass), Bartek "Mr Shuffle" Niebielecki (drums)

Bedrock Bluesband (Norway)

According to experienced musicians and music journalists, Bedrock Bluesband is playing groundbreaking blues with elements of funk, rock and jazz. The strength in this band is their passionate love for music and the fun of playing it. This has resulted in the rating five of six possible in several papers and a great performance at NRK, a national TV-channel in Norway. Winners of the Union Bluescup on Notodden Bluesfestival 2006, held by the Norwegian Blues Union.

The band: Stian Haslie (guitar), Tore Flatjord (saxophone), Sindre Habberstad (bass), Vetle Larsen(drums), Stian Borgen (guitar, vocals)

Tim Lothar (Danmark)

Originally a skilled drummer (playing with the likes of Peter Nande and Lightnin' Mo) Tim Lothar learnt to master the blues guitar merely five years ago. In 2006 he sat down with his guitar in his living room and recorded a CD on his own. The result: One of the nicest guitar blues CDs in the last few years. In the meantime he has released a second just as brilliant solo CD. In 2008 he was awarded "Danish Blues Musician Of The Year" by the Copenhagen Blues Festival, and in 2009 he received the Danish Music Award for the "Best Danish Blues Album".

Tim Lothar Petersen (vocals, guitar)

Coolish & Cielak (Poland)

Adam Coolish was born to sing the blues. Autobiographical songs talking about real life; hypnotic guitar groove sounding like it would be coming from the best records of the boogie master, John Lee; and the voice – deep, warm and full of emotions. After four CDs, two solo ones and two with his critically acclaimed band Coolish Blues Session, Adam went back to his roots recording "100% Cotton Blues" with the meanest harmonica player in Central Europe, Michal Kielak. The result is a magical meeting between Adam's Silesian poetry and the essence of the blues. Michał "Cielak" Kielak started playing harmonica when he was 15 years old and today he is one of the best harp players in Poland and – as some specialists say – in Europe.

Adam Coolish (vocals, guitar), Michał „Cielak“ Kielak (harp)

Steve Grahn & Mattias Malm (Sweden)

Steve Grahn has been playing the blues since 1962 and there was made four records. two with the band "Three Studs and a Stone": Live At The Blue Boat 1999 and Ain't No Blues On My Radio 2000, and One solo acoustic CD: Steve Grahn solo 2004, and the latest one: That's Alright 2006 with the guitarist and dobro player Matthias Malm. Steve Grahn is the winner of the great Swedish blues prize "Janne Rosenqvist Memorial Award 2009".

Steve Grahn (vocal, acoustic guitars, dobro, foot stomp), Mattias Malm (acoustic guitars, dobro)

Jo' Buddy & Down Home King III (Finland)

Jo' Buddy (42) sings soulfully, plays rhythm and simultaneously solo and bass-lines with his low tuned raw electric guitar, while his "back up band" Down Horne King III (27) on drums & percussion conjures irresistibly free & easy rockin' hip-shakin' grooves … they are just 'Two Guys Nothin' Mo', and irrespective their 16 years of age difference they can undoubtedly make their own full band sound.

Their approach is hypnotic, raw, down to earth and laidback. They are mixin' up inspiringly almost forgotten older & more recent Deep South's traditions from the 20th century up to now, filtered in a way that no one else is doing anymore.

Jo' Buddy (vocal, low tuned raw electric guitar), Down Home King III (drums, percussion)