Omar & The Howlers

CD:  Boogie Man
Label:  Ruf Records
Rating: 
Genre:    Roots Blues
 

Kent “Omar” Dykes may be from Mississippi but he plays authentic Texas roadhouse-rocking blues, as is fitting for a man who long ago adopted Texas, specifically Austin, as his home.  There’s really nothing fancy about his music, but his voice is an amazing instrument – going from smooth to having more grit than a gravel pit – plus his fretwork is top notch.  He plays the Austin card heavy for this outing, inviting several of the city’s elite to his Boogie Man party, not only to join in on the performance, but also to help with the songwriting chores.  Guests include Double Trouble, Terry Bozzio, Chris Duarte, Stephen Bruton, Jon Dee Graham, Darden Smith, Papa Mali, Alejandro Escovedo, and Ray Wylie Hubbard.  The proof is in the pudding and the results of this tasty concoction are consistently satisfying, with many noteworthy tracks, such as the swamp-mojo rocker (a style that Dykes does as well as anybody these days), “Stone Cold Blues;” the tricked-up “Bamboozled;” the bluesy death song, “White Crosses;” and the blues rockers “Bad In a Good Way” and “That’s Just My Life.”  Boogie Man may be Dyke’s most consistent and hence strongest outing to date.

 

By Michael Dixon