Malcolm Holcombe – Pitiful Blues

This is Holcombe‘s tenth release so far. Like those before, it features his rasping vocal delivery coupled with good, strong acoustic guitar picking.  For me, it‘s probably his best offering to date.

Based in North Carolina‘s Piedmont region of the USA, Holcombe‘s guitar-work reflects the quality and driving style of his home-area in the Appalachians with a skilful mix of 1930s style picking and cross-over Americana and Bluegrass influences.  A sort of ‚backwoods blues‘ in sound and feel, the kind of thing you might expect to find being played on a sleepy southern porch on a hot, steamy day.

As always with this guy, the lyrics are strong and emotive. The entire ten-track album is chock-full of powerful and raw emotion, stripped-down sounds that jump from the disc to grab you by the throat. Holcombe is not a man to be ignored. Both the voice and playing demand and warrant attention.  

From the opening title track to the close of the album, Holcombe‘s stirring lyrics and at times dirge-like vocals carry this album out of the shadows into the light and easily earns it a place on any acoustic blues-lover‘s collection. This is a guy who is always interesting, daring to be different and staying well clear of the mainstream blues world. Pitiful Blues would be worth having for the wonderful thumping guitar bass runs and jangling treble solos with the drawling vocal delivery evident on the eponymous title track alone.