Share the post "Gig review: COCO MONTOYA – Beaverwood Club, Chislehurst, 22 May 2014"
There are great blues players and then there is Coco Montoya. He’s a purveyor of a historic blues lineage that stretches back to his formative years with Albert Collins, but he transforms it into his own exciting blues hybrid, complete with soulful interpretive singing and stinging guitar lines.
Tonight’s Beaverwood show is memorable for the cross generational blues connection that sees Laurence Jones rip things up with a fiery show, while Coco leans into his solos and builds them up incrementally with varied tones, subtle tempo and chord changes, exquisite dynamics and intricate playing that speak to us conversationally
A Coco Montoya show is a celebration of all that’s good about contemporary blues. He lives for an essential feel, a sweet tone and constantly searches for lyrical meaning while never wasting a note.
On the majestic groove of ‘Don’t Go Making Plans’, he’s a one man physical theatre. He leans into the song and towers over his over his guitar to emphasize a note, while eyeballing the front row as if to ask them, did you dig that?
He revels in his band’s exquisite interplay and glues together disparate elements of funk, soul, rocking shuffles and perfunctory break downs that he resolves with subtle tonal nuances.
He’s arguably one of the most authentic blues guitarists of our day, if only for his relentless search for emotion and feel. There’s Albert Collins style cool, Albert King like string bends, and enough fire in the climactic moments to remind us of his hey-day alongside Walter Trout in John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.
He sets an incredible high standard with the harmony drenched ‘Wish I Could Be That Strong’, on which Brant Leeper’s keyboard sweeps nicely underscores the melody. There’s plenty of variety and a nice ebb and flow to the set, as Coco slips into a funky, tightly wrapped Latino rhythm on ‘Hey Senorita’. It’s a song full of sustained notes and sudden contrasting note flurries over Renee Beever’s crisp cymbal work.
His signature tune ‘I Want It All Back’ provides the best example of how a gentle undulating melody with an MOR feel is transformed into something more essential, by a melodic hook and a sudden uplifting solo, full of delicate touch and tone. Then there’s the sultry shuffle ‘Love Jail’, which is full of conversational guitar parts and a tip of the hat to his mentor Albert Collins, who was definitely in the house tonight!
Brant Leeper switches from piano to a B3 organ sound on a slow blues – which may be ‘You Don’t Love Me’ – full of cool dynamics, from Coco’s volume swells and chicken squawks to Brant’s keyboard dexterity and the peerless rhythm section of Nate Brown and Rene Beevers.
The whole evening rushes by in flash, before Laurence Jones returns for a beautifully paced jam on the encore. A sharply drawn contrast between Coco’s Collins style cool and Laurence’s ripping intensity melds into joyous double lines that provide an explosive finish worthy of a great night.
It’s been five years since Coco was last here, let’s hope he doesn’t leave it so long next time round.
Review by Pete Feenstra
All Photos by Mark Hughes (c) MHP
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.
Next session: Sunday 1 December
Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio
David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 3 November 2024.
UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 29 October 2024.
How to Listen Live?
Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)
Listen via Windows Media Player. Click or tap here and “open file”
Listen via other media player (eg. VLC) Click or tap here and “open file”
Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.
More information and links at our radio website where you can listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com
Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024
ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)
Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)
Popular (last 10 days)
Share the post "Gig review: COCO MONTOYA – Beaverwood Club, Chislehurst, 22 May 2014"
PDF - you can delete unwanted sections
