Who the hell is Big Shanty?
Big Shanty is a festival held in Kennesaw, Georgia but I ain't talking about that. I'm talking about The Man Big Shanty. The mystery. The enigma. Never heard of him have you? Me neither. I found him via a spanish language garage/punk/blues/blog I subscribe to. Yet the dude has well over a million downloads via his website.
Big Shanty has a voice like a soulful foghorn. His slide guitar sounds like a red hot buzz saw cuttin' wood for a new Georgia whore house bedroom. His sound has been described "acid blues, techno blues, death metal blues, and heavy metal funk." The true sound is (D) All of the above, and somewheres in between there. It's like a loud n' grownass southern arena-rock-sized Jon Spencer playing serious ZZ Top blues, backed by Kid Rock's band, with Massive Attack occasionally walking thru the room. It's an odd dichotomy that totally works.
Big Shanty - Walking Shoes - mp3
Big Shanty - Born Up In Trouble - mp3By the way, Big Shanty has a fascinating back story. In a previous life he was instrumental in the development of southern rock and Capricorn records. More more HERE.
