JASON RICCI & NEW BLOOD "DONE WITH THE DEVIL" Source: Blues Bytes Date: 06/2009 Writer: Kyle Diebler

I’ve had fans of Jason Ricci here in Phoenix bend my ear about him for the last couple of years. I finally got the chance to see Jason & New Blood play at Blues From The Top last June and found his “wall of sound” approach over the edge. But it made sense to me and I appreciated the thought that went into Jason’s set. He and the band definitely follow their own muse.

Fast forward to working with Jason at this year’s IBC finals, which was was definitely a bit more interesting. Jason is nothing if not opinionated and he can be a pain in the a**, but attendees of the IBC finals found him refreshing and justifiably so. Still, it was a surprise to me to realize that all of the liner notes on the new Jason Ricci and New Blood CD, Done with the Devil, were written by Jason himself. I have over 5,000 CDs in my collection and I believe this is the first one I own where the artist has written all of the liner notes. It was refreshing to see that as Jason as grown into his own skin, he and the band are more and more appreciated for the Bluesmen they truly are. I’ll leave the rest of Jason’s commentary for you to read, but I’m sure you’ll find his insight and honesty refreshing. Let’s get on to their latest disc.

Shades of the Mississippi Hill country rear its head on our first cut, “Done with the Devil.” The Devil is a force in many a Crossroads discussion, and here Jason has comes to grip with the Devil’s presence in his life and managed to release himself from it. “Thing knocks at the door…this ain’t no folklore…it’s a dirty force…you cannot divorce…done with the devil”! Whatever the hold may be, Jason has managed to extricate himself from its clutches.

The ballad, “Sweet Loving,” is our next cut. Jason starts out to write a thank you letter to someone at his mother’s request and finds himself bending to other influences in his life that prevent him from writing the note. “It’s the thank you letter that I never wrote…that I told my momma I sent…it’s the cool intentions that I started with…that I compromised and bent….sweet loving with my baby!” The interaction between Jason’s harp and Shawn Starski’s guitar is very intricate and well-done as Jason celebrates the love of his choosing.

The frenetic energy of the band is back on our next tune, “Hollering for Craig Lawler.” Craig Lawler was a harmonica student of Watermelon Slim’s who has passed away that Jason knew and this tune is in celebration of Craig’s life in the Blues. “It’s time to…holler for Craig Lawler…holler for Craig Lawler!”

Slow, melancholy notes emit from Jason’s harp as he plays the introduction to “Broken Toy.” Here Jason reflects on his perceptions of living a lifestyle outside of what society perceives to be the norm. Openly gay and true to his beliefs, Jason is aware of the isolation that he sometimes feels. “Well…I’m an outsider…not a girl…not a boy…I feel like a broken toy!” The next tune, “Ptryptophan Pterodactyl,” is an instrumental that lets Jason and the New Blood let their hair down. A strong bass line from Todd Edmunds forms the backbone for this free-form exploration of musical forms. Part contemporary jazz, part blues with some reggae influences, “Ptryptophan Pterodactyl” shows that every player in the band has some serious chops.

“I Turned into a Martian” follows with its own frantic energy as Shawn Starski’s guitar leads the way. “I turned into a Martian…I can’t even recall my name…sometimes I never want to sleep at night…well, I turned into a Martian!” The tempo slows down as Jason and the band sink their teeth into the Willie Dixon classic, “As Long as I Have You.” “Call me your baby…and I’ll be your man…as long as I have you…northing I won’t do, baby…long as I have you!” Shawn takes over the vocal duties on a tune he wrote, “How it Come to Be.” His fretwork on the Dobro stands out as he tells us about the relationship he’s ending. “Put on my walking shoes…I’m going downtown…baby, I’m leaving you…all day long…I finally see…how it come to be!”

“Life of Denial” is a story about a man who did his prison time and then had trouble integrating back into society. “Back in time…all over again…that life of crime…will never end…that I had it licked…but the clock, it ticked…and the times, it ended again. Jason’s harp provides the intro for the band’s next instrumental, “Afro Blue.” There’s no doubt that Jason is at the forefront of this generation’s harp players and he definitely shows us why in “Afro Blue.”

Jason and New Blood bring out the kitchen sink for a tune written by their drummer, Ed Michaels, who also sings the lead on “Keep the Wolf from My Door.” Shawn Kellerman and his band join the party on this tune as Ed works to keep his life together. “The repo man…he repossessed my stuff…and then they came and took my car…I know one thing…that without my wheels…I won’t be getting far…landlord said I was evicted…30 days to leave…don’t know where I’m a going to…but good luck is what I need…keep the wolf from my door…a little bit longer…and I won’t have to sleep outdoors!”
Done with the Devil closes with the tune “Enlightenment,” another instrumental with a gypsy/carnival feel whose melancholy notes are complimented by the operatic vocals of Brady Mills at the end. A fitting end to what has been an extremely interesting record.
Jason Ricci and New Blood have come a long way together as a band, and it's fitting that Jason notes that the band itself is a stronger entity than any one player in the band, including Jason himself. From its liner notes to its complicated subject matter, Done with the Devil is a disc that exemplifies the maturation of Jason Ricci and New Blood as they continue on their musical exploration of the forces that influence their brand of music. Jason and New Blood are definitely not traditionalists, but they are definitely Bluesmen.