Ton Of Blues barreled into Boston’s Hard Rock Café last Friday night, and they kicked ass with originals and standards in a lively 45 minute romp.
TOB began with some even tempered blues, the kind of blues that don’t scream at you with fiery playing but with muscular underpinnings. But the easy going intro some gave way to colorful stuff. Guitarist Scott LeBlanc made his guitar hiss with fancy finger work, sliding some greasy notes around while TOB’s mighty rhythm section kept a steady stump in the groove. There is no overlooking the heft this band serves up due to the drumming style of best dressed drummer Al Clark and knobby bass playing of Jeff Lorenzon.
Ton Of Blues have got a lot of intricacies in their interplay between each band member, even though on the surface they seem to be a basic blues outfit. Keeping the bottom heavy yet danceable is one of this band’s strength. They just have a bounce in their backbeat that durable rhythm section.
Lead singer Spud Kelly sounded svelte on “One More Mile To Go” and his vocal maintained that balance between belt and tone for a solid set. On Ton Of Blues’ original “Sweetie Pie” Kelly controlled his tone so it perfectly matched this tune that plays out with a 1950s classic feel, making it sound like something you should have heard of, as it sounds like a song that should already have been a hit in a past decade and still resonates well today. Kelly is more of the rangy voice used as an instrument than what might be perceived until you’ve heard him sing several different kinds of songs.
Later in the set, Kelly got wilder in his vocal approach, his tone powerful and rangy, let the band go out with a band and not a whimper.
“Sweetie Pie,” aside from being quite catchy, also offers for some arty flourishes from the instruments. LeBlanc made his guitar notes tap dance around the groove, which was no mean feat, as this band keeps moving their groove around. It’s not that the band is ever out of lock with each other. They just have a lot of an uncanny ability to widen their beat, to keep the bottom flexible even though it is simultaneously in the pocket.
“Salt And Sugarcane” came on slow and moody and forced you to feel its emotive quality. Eventually, Kelly belted it out with oomph and pizzazz, making his voice felt on the other side of the room. LeBlanc too greased the tune, with rangy zigs and zags in his melodic phrasing.
“Midnight Train” has become a staple of Ton Of Blues’ set list, and their take on this song makes it a bumpy ride at full speed. It chugged forward with the locomotive mystery that the title implies. LeBlanc fired off his heartiest notes of the evening, his guitar spikes exploding with the energy of a pack of firecrackers, startling in their sudden burst of power but sounding oh so cool. With his Celestial Effects pedals, LeBlanc focused on his higher notes, stretching them out, making them come alive with electric elasticity.
Ton Of Blues kept people dancing through out their set. Many were twisting to their songs, probably because their music is rooted in the more rhythmic blues of the 1950s and 1960s. The fans who came out to see them were enthusiastic and likely left feeling satisfied with the tunes they heard.
Ton Of Blues is on Facebook.
