What the.....

Thanks to Tim for originally posting this.

I still haven’t fully processed this incredible album. I’m not even sure what it is that makes it so incredible. It has gotten to me though and I don’t know what to do about it. Yeah, they could use a bassist and maybe some harp…but in the end, is it necessary…I don’t know yet. Please download and listen. I want to hear your feedback. Not just a thanks, but real feed back. I want to know if others are as perplexed as I am. Like the mini-reviews, Rob and George (TONA) have been leaving lately.

Here are a few thoughts I have on the album. I am not a fan of the theremin. Thankfully, it used sparingly on the album. I think a harp (harmonica) would be much more suited to the music. The Black Smokers are truly students of the music . They take their influences and instead of just grinding out more of the same they take from them , learn from them and apply what they have learned in a way uniquely their own. Their approach is 100% minimalist, but they succeed on a level that few could ever hope for. There is a myriad of influences here, but they don’t sound like leftover stew. There is the hip-hop influenced beat in “Notturno OP. 69,” the slide guitar playing in “Kickboxer Girl” or the Tom Waits sounding “Rain On The Ocean,” all of which sound as though they belong and not out of place. Production-wise the sound is phenomenal, perfectly accentuating the stellar songwriting.

Enjoy. - DM

I could not say better what the band has said themselves in the way of an official bio:

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So, let’s see…
We’ve always listened to a lot of Delta Blues: Charlie Patton, Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson…but unfortunately it was always our private passion, we always played with people who picked up blues after Muddy Waters. Or rather, in many cases, after The Blues Brothers.
When we discovered RL Burnside, Fat Possum, Bob Log and we were lucky enough first to see John Schooley and then to play with Jimbo Matthus, we discovered that you could simply ‘do it’. We needed the expressive and artistic freedom that only a duo could provide: the search for the true spirit of improvisation, the photography of music, without stylistic limits. Of course, you can hear Tom Waits, James Brown and AC/DC in our blues but, in the free form of the down home style of blues, we’ve found a more direct vehicle for our music. We know the tradition but we don’t always respect it because we’re telling our stories not borrowing the lives of others.
Furthermore, ‘essentiality’, in other words the desire to keep things simple, plays a part in our musical journey and you can hear this in even the most standard formations we work with. Musically, I went through a difficult period when I couldn’t understand the lack of ‘artistic need’ in other musicians. This sense of solitude strengthened me and I faced my fears through the duo where, on one hand, I’m limited but, on the other, I’m free… and only honest music works! Whilst we will always keep both Hendrix and John Spencer in our sights, our main focus is always on our music. - Marcello “Blues” Milanese & Ivano “Little Lung” Zanotti
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Marcello "Blues" Milanese - vox, guitars, theremin:
He started playing the Blues in the 90s. In 1996 he wrote and performed the music for a play about the Blues, performed at the Macalle Blues Festival in the province of Alessandria. In 1999 his first single was released; ‘Chainsaw and Brokenheart’ on Bad Man Records which was distributed not only in Italy but also in Germany and the USA. At the end of 2000 the band finished the album Wrong Time Wrong Place’ recorded from jamming sessions in a home studio in just a few weeks. It was released, again on Bad Man Records, in both CD and LP formats (the LP has a different cover and includes a poster and a bonus track). Marcello has not only ‘arrived’ at the prestigious BluesHouse but also appear on a compilation CD celebrating 10 years of this legendary Milan venue. In 2003 contributed to another compilation, Blues Sounds Good Vol. I on Crotalo Records, together with some of the best Italian bluesmen. Marcello and his previous band appeared in the film ‘Texas’ directed by Fausto Paravidino for Fandango Film and three of the tracks from his CD ‘Esterdays’ are on the soundtrack along with a version of ‘The Crying Game’ re-arranged by the group. The film, produced by Domenico Procacci, distributed by Medusa starring Valeria Golino, Riccardo Scamarcio and Valeria Binasco, was shown at the 2005 Venice Film Festival. In 2006 he funded other two projects: The BluesMaphia (3 guitars, Hammond C3, bass guitar, drums) and The BlackSmokers (vox&guitar and octaver, drums). The first one is pure “RockBlues straight from the barrel of a gun!” and the second one is a “Deep Downhome Psyco Blues Duo”.
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Ivano "Little Lung" Zanotti:
Ivano Zanotti is a professional drum player and he played with lots of Italian and international artists: Eugenio Finardi, Manolo Badrena (Weather Report), Federico Poggipollini (Ligabue, Litfiba), Maurizio Solieri (Vasco Rossi). Just to mention few. He works in studio with most of the best producers and musicians of the Italian scene like Vince Tempera, Roberto Vernetti e Roberto Casini. He has an intensive concert carrier and he opened, with one of his band, the 2005 and 2007 Vasco Rossi Tour. During 2006 he opened, and played the final jam session, James Brown and B.B. King Italian concerts. With his fusion band "S.I.P. Tonic" played in New York in 2006 for a tour with Manolo Badrena (Weather Report).

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The Black Smokers are passionate about the blues tradition but hate to follow all the rules. From Alessandria, Italy, this downhome-psycho-rock-blues duo doesn’t hide their deep love for Delta Blues artists such as Charlie Patton, Robert Johnson & Blind Lemon Jefferson. More recent influences include RL Burnside, Tom Waits, Johnny Cash & AC/DC.
In March 2009 Pravda Records will release their new album titled “USED” and you’ll hear guitarist Marcello “Blues” Milanese & drummer Ivano “Little Lung” Zanotti’s strong desire to keep things simple, loose and in the moment. After releasing several albums and touring extensively in Europe, they took the US by storm in 2008.
Along the way, Black Smokers raised eyebrows and laid their foundation. Now armed with a brand new album, look for a triumphant return…. (label bio)

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There are some groups that are content with just hovering around on the surface and playing it safe and then there are others whom like to dig deep down in the dirt and pull up a little treasure now and then. The Black Smokers are definitely the later and their newest album titled "Used" is most definitely a treasure, especially to listen to.

Reminiscent of ZZ Top and often called a "Psycho Blues Duo", band members Marcello "Blues" Milanese (Guitar, Vocals), and Ivano "Little Lung" Zanotti (Drummer), brings us 16 Power Packed Tracks, all original, except for Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, which they have put a little burner underneath and cranked up the heat and the beat, successfully branding it to their style. (Review from Blues Underground Network)

Check out the band’s official website here:
http://www.blacksmokers.org/
Of course the have a MySpace profile too:
www.myspace.com/blacksmokers
You can order a copy of the CD here.

Tracklist:
01. Hey Mama
02. Kickboxer Girl
03. Rain On The Ocean
04. Wanna Wait
05. Bullet Proof
06. Used
07. What The Hell
08. Raccoon City Limits
09. Cheap Women
10. Foggy Days
11. Notturno OP. 69
12. Toc Toc
13. Gone
14. Little Nasty Girl
15. Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash Cover)
16. Bullet Proof (Live At The Deep Blues Festival 2008)

The Black Smokers – Used: http://lix.in/-4942e6