2015 might be over and done but there was so much music released last year, of such incredible quality that cannot be ignored or left behind at all.
Population Unknown is the outstanding debut of Mississippi Bigfoot, an American band formed in May 2015 following a concert performed in Clarksdale, MS. The outcome brought together this quintet of highly skilled musicians, allowing them to explore and exchange each other's musical roots even further, resulting in this excellent album.
It is important to underline the individual skills of each single member of the band on this exquisite record. Johnny Holiday on lead guitar builds some robust and powerful solos on tracks such as No Flesh In Outerspace or Who's Gonna Run This Town, flexing his guitar muscles with fabulous results. Ashley Bishop on guitars, Gary Dale on bass and Doug McMinn on drums and harp provide, throughout the album, a relentless consistant and precise rhytm session that doesn't miss a note in any track of the album.
Christina Vierra on vocals and ukulele deserves a special mention. Her powerful voice is able to create an incredible array of intense vibes and feelings through the whole record. It may carry, at times, a lot of fun and swagger, like on tracks such as The Hunter or Burn That Woman Down or be able to touch your soul so delicately, like very few singers are able to do, as in the ballad You Did.
There is never a moment of boredom on Population Unknown. It's a sonic journey going Southbound on the United States' map and in the history of American Music . Recorded in the legendary Ardent Studios in Memphis, the sound of the album captures elements of Memphis Soul, adding the roots and traditions of the Mississippi Delta Blues until reaching the unmistakable swamp of blues/rock style that has got the word "Texas" written through and through.
Intense, straight-in-your-face, sonically impeccable. Population Unknown offers a blend of genres and a quality of music of the highest standards. Mississippi Bigfoot is one of the best music surprises of 2015. One of those surprises that, we hope, is going to last for many years to come.
Giovanni "Gio" Pilato
Population Unknown is released by Silver Tongue Records and can purchased as a download via Amazon
