The Matthew Skoller Band - Shoulder to the Wind (2001)

There's a fierce, visceral quality to Skoller's music. He's a bit of a cynic, sometimes angry, always opinionated. You can hear and feel his personality in his music. Born a New Yorker, he moved to Chicago on 1987. His mature harmonica playing led a number of musicians to take him into their bands; Deitra Farr, Big Time Sarah, Jimmy Rogers, Big Daddy Kinsey, John Primer, Bernard Allison, H-Bomb Ferguson and Larry Garner. In 1992 Skoller started his own band. This cd is a killer, full of keen observations, driving rhythms, desperate textures and coutionary messages. Skoller has a free flow of expression that comes from maturity, expierence and hard work. He tells his own story. His take on the blues tradition is about letting his own voice come through, his culture, his experience.