Ryan Montbleau

Anyone who is man enough to be the same age, have the same profession, be a lot less "successful" and have a song that makes fun of John Mayer is cool in my book. Ryan is a very talented guitar player and has a very unique voice, though I pick up a hint of Jason Kay there somewhere. In fact, I've been trying to figure out how he plays some of those fast jazzy/bluesy riffs and as if that wasn't hard enough he sings on top -- a very talented musician indeed. All that I've heard from Ryan is what is available for free download at his site and I haven't heard the new record. The stuff from the first two is mostly acoustic, I think -- a man and six-string band. I particularly like the tracks City and Just Perfect. The guitar work in Tell Me Another and Shuffling Paper also deserves mention.

Describing the genre is kinda hard, it is a fusion of soul, jazz, folk, blues and "americana", I guess. I enjoy the music and can actually relate to it quite a bit; however, my one dislike is that Ryan's lyrics are a bit too self-serving. They tend to revolve around "I" which is a common vice for musicians nowadays. Maybe I've just been spoiled lyrics-wise by listening to Chetro and Jethro too much, though.

In the introduction to Substitute Teacher Blues Ryan is just talking to the crowd about his day job and he pauses to talk about John Mayer: "...nah, he's good...he's my age! He's a singer/songwriter, I'm a singer/songwriter and I'm a substitute teacher at my old high school and John is not... I'm willing to bet!" But, Ryan does get his payback, check out the song.

Ryan's site

Mike Barnet

Indie urban folk. Gotta love that. I had thought for a long time that a hybrid between the political-edgy rhymes you might find in an underground hip-hop artist and dylanesque folk melodies would be a killer act. That is what Mike Barnet is like. I have had the pleasure of seeing him play twice back in Eugene and I was not disappointed either time. The records are also very good, specially when he keeps things natural with very little production. I am more fond of the earlier albums (Religion is for Robots, The Art of Drowning) than the newer Bourgeois Backlash which features synth-driven beats and audio production. Tracks to check out, all of which are available for download at his site for free (as in freedom):
- Someday
- The art of drowning
- Kingdom Song
- Rescue Dogs

Check it: Official Site and at myspace.