Album review: NINE BELOW ZERO – Blues Power Volume 1

October 8th, 2025 by petefeenstra

Zed Records [Release date 22.09.25]

Nine Below Zero’s ‘Blues Power Volume 1’ does what it says on the tin.

The album represents the best blues tracks they bands has recorded over the last 20 years. And if the South London band might have borrowed their album title from Albert King, and Chicago blues provided them with fuel for their fire, this album is essentially a restatement of their core blues values in a career spanning three and half decades.

It’s an album that kicks like a mule, swings like a circus roundabout, and is a consistently powered by unrelenting energy.

The core members of Dennis Greaves and Mark Feltham learnt their brand of blues via their parents Chicago blues platters, while adding the energy of the J. Geils Band and the UK DIY punk ethos.

The result was a high octane r&b outfit which evolved from energetic blues covers to an impressive catalogue of self released material.

It’s almost as having learnt their craft and more, they have come full circle by playing the music they love on their own terms.

One reason for their return to the blues might be that a couple of their self penned noughties releases were received with underwhelming attention, be it the song driven ‘Refrigerator’ in 2000 or the very underrated ‘It’s Never Too Late’ in 2009.

In between the above two studio albums, they also released the 2005 ‘Hats Off’ blues album, which provides half of the material here and is reinvigorated by Wayne Proctor’s production, mixing and mastering work.

You can probably trace the genesis of the new album back to Proctor’s work on the band’s early career ‘Back in The Day’ album (ie. Stan’s Blues Band era) recorded in the late 70’s and re-mixed etc in 2022.

Mark Feltham’s powerful dirt sounding harp helps extend Willie Dixon’s ‘I Want To Be Loved’, from the original short version to be found on that album to 2.18 seconds worth heavy of coruscating Chicago blues here.

‘Blues Power Volume 1’ finds a couple of different band line-ups in hard driving form over 12 tracks, on which Dennis’s guitar playing holds sway over Mark Feltham’s harp playing.

The opening cover of Little Milton’s ‘That’s What Love Can Make You Do’ is a banger, and finds the expanded big band of the ’13 Shades Of Blue’ album in a vibrant experimental mode, as guest Glenn Tilbrook adds some unexpected sitar guitar to bring a delightful tonal variation alongside one of Greaves’ very best vocals.

And if harp player Mark Feltham initially takes a back seat, he soon makes his presence felt on Little Walter’s instrumental ‘The Toddle’.

The track is a magical showcase of his abilities, as he digs deep for an emotional connection with the blues, while adding effortless technique.

The power shuffle ‘Baby’ is well worthy of being chosen as the lead radio track, especially given the ‘Blues Power’ album title.

It’s a tightly wrought and sonically crisp outing featuring a great combination of Greaves’ stinging guitar attack and nuanced vocal, while Ben Waters adds piano fills over an ‘in the pocket’ rhythm section.

The band’s self penned ‘Austerity Blues’ is even better, with more aggressive guitar playing bolstered by beefy horns and a stellar harp break at 1.52, on a track which extends its sonic venom into socially relevant lyrics:

“It’s the rich that get the gravy and the poor that get the blame, it’s the same the whole world over, ain’t it a crying shame.”

South London blues indeed!

And if there’s a whiff of over familiarity to ‘Everyday I Have The Blues’, there’s no denying the feverish way the band attacks the piece to round off side one (assuming you buy the vinyl options!)

Keyboard player Ben Waters alternates between piano and organ, as he works his way round Greaves’ piercing guitar lines, as they blow away the metaphorical cobwebs, powered by the incendiary Brendan O’Neil on drums.

Mark Feltham make a significant re-appearance on Willie Dixon’s ‘I’m Ready’, on a swing-led combination of warm timbre vocals, grainy harp and behind- the-beat swagger.

‘Blues Power Volume 1’ certainly lives up to its name, with Wayne Proctor’s input bringing a significant impact to the vocals and instrumental separation, leaving the band to add their trademark dynamics on the perfunctory ‘Move It’.

Eddie Boyd’s ‘Blues Is Here to Stay’ is another highlight, being a whip crack shuffle powered by the Gerry McAvoy/Brendan O’Neill rhythm section, which somehow leaves enough space for Ben Waters’ piano.

The album finishes with a celebratory double shot, incorporating Freddie King’s version of ‘Takin’ Care of Business’ and the Dennis Greaves penned ‘It’s Never Too Late’.

Mark Feltham’s signature flighty harp and note bends provide the perfect foil for Greaves’s exaggerated vowels on an aptly titled jumpy track.

If nothing else, it might nudge the band in the direction more self penned blues output.

After all ‘Blues Power, Volume 1’ suggests there’s more music in the pipeline. ****

Review by Pete Feenstra

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