Gary Clark Jr, Live North America 2016

I don't intend on making this a regular thing, posting about music I've been listening to but this is one of those albums that just hits me on a visceral level. I'm not entirely sure I can pin-point why but here are a few possible contending thoughts.

Just the raw talent of Gary Clark Jr smacks you right in the chops from the get-go. The opening bars of Grinder grab you and it just doesn't let up.

There's a flavour to the guitar solos which, to me, are reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock, another album which hooked me as soon as I heard it. There's a loosness to the solos and the overall arrangement of the band for that matter which has a similar feel of these tracks being well rehearsed, yet at the same time feels fresh as though playing fresh from the practice room.

There's a range of styles and sounds too. It's not all one kind of music. There's some slow soulful tracks, some which have a bit more of a funk vibe and others a bit more rock or blues. It's a good mix.

It just oozes the feeling of a band who know how to play together and have fun doing it.

As you can probably tell, I'm not too great at putting into words how music can sometimes affect me. In this case, I think I'll just drop in the opening track here and encourage you to go grab some good headphones, put aside an hour and fifteen minutes, sit back, and just listen to the whole damn thing.