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The Newest Blues Young Gun: Jared James Nichols

Jared James NicholsIt seems like every few years a new gunslinging blues guitarist pops out of the woodwork to be crowned the next blues-rock god. The guitar-centric blues-rock genre really originated with Jimi Hendrix but now mostly caters to white men who also play guitar. After Hendrix came disciples like Robben Trower, and of course Stevie Ray Vaughn. But SRV wasn’t just a Hendrix impersonator, and by mixing Hendrix’s licks and tone with influences from Albert King and T-bone Walker, SRV created his own unique style and his own group of dedicated impersonators. Kenny Wayne Shepard and Johnny Lang fell under that umbrella when they burst on to the scene as teenagers in the 90′s, Joe Bonamassa reigns as current king (although not really an SRV impersonator), and most recently, Gary Clark Jr has been quite a bit of press.

But now there’s a 23-year Wisconsinite named Jared James Nichols, and after seeing him at the Basement in Nashville last night, I have to admit he’s pretty good. Sure the blues-rock act can get old, but at the same time, the Hendrix inspired primal shrieks and wails from an overdriven electric guitar can still raise the hair on your neck, and Nichols has that sound perfected. While at times his performance seemed little contrived, with some of his stage “moves” seeming a too staged, his brief set was so full of energy, that it hardly matter.

And Nichols can really play the hell out his beat up Les Paul, forgoing a traditional pick and instead opting to use his fingers to strum, pick and snap his guitar’s strings. Often fingerpicked guitar sounds less aggressive because string attack is deadened by the player’s fleshy fingertips, but that just wasn’t the case with Nichols playing. He banged, shook, and muscled out some downright nasty licks, and often used multiple picking fingers to generate some impressive speed. While a lot of his licks are from the Hendrix/SRV playbook, he’s also got a distinct style, and at only 23, he certainly has time to further develop his style.

Nichols’ 20 minute set consisted of tunes from his EP Old Glory & The Wild Revival that was released early this summer. His tunes are certainly inspired by classic Hendrix riff-based tunes like “Purple Haze,” and “Foxy Lady,” but his songs also embody a harder rock edge that reminded me of Lenny Kravitz and even Velvet Revolver.

Watching Nichols in Nashville’s tiny Basement venue made it was clear that he was destined for much larger stages. His songs were polished, he’s got amazing chops, a commanding stage presence and a talented group of backing musicians with Dennis Holm on drums and Eric Sandlin on bass. But as many before him have discovered, the blues young gun hype only lasts as long as it takes to find the next teenager who can burn up a fretboard. But for now, Nichols’ stock is still rising, so watch for him to gain more popularity, especially in the guitar community.

Take a listen to Jared James Nichols’ debut EP Old Glory & The Wild Revival

 

 

 



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