Nacho Salmeron – Blues Therapy | Album Review

Nacho Salmeron – Blues Therapy

Self released

www.facebook.com/nacho.salmeron.3

10 songs

Good Blues Rock comes from all corners of the world. It’s what’s so remarkable and universal about the Blues and its many sub genres. Case in point Nacho Salmeron. Hailing from Jerez de la Frontera in southern Spain, a town known for Flamenco music, Nacho gives us in his 3rd solo release Blues Therapy a take on the Blues that is as much influenced by Steely Dan as it is Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Nacho Salmeron is a talented guitarist with liquid chops and a pension for writing clever slightly out of the box Blues riffs. Tunes like the instrumentals “Alf’s Line” (featuring Jesus Lavilla on organ) and “The African” have a 90’s Fusion Jazz vibe. Resplendent with synchronized full band turn around runs and flashy stabs of rhythm guitar playing all kinds of substitution chords. “Down for Good” achieves a push pull between strong riffing Blues and Aja informed smoothness.

Blues Therapy also Rocks, at times hard. “Lockdown Blues” seems to distill all Nacho’s COVID angst into a chugging ZZ Top meets Black Crows melt down. While the swaying lope of instrumental “Hey” crunchly marches. The chug of opener “Easy If You Try” and the uptown swing of instrumental “Blues For Jimmy” offer really well executed hard hitting traditional Blues.

Coming from the home of Flamenco it’s not surprising that Nacho has a tune called “Flamenco Dreams.” This instrumental dream is not much Flamenco but more Fusion Rock. With a slow burn, “Flamenco Dream” billows out with ever expanding sheets of guitar riffing. This highlight performance really shows Salmeron’s six string prowess.

Salmeron has a tight 4 piece band on Blues Therapy and the music is rewarded by the consistency. Alfonso Fernandez on bass, Ismael Colon on drums and Oscar Enrique Plazaola on keyboards support Nacho’s leadership well. It is because the band is so tight and flexible that the, at times, whiplash switches in styles work keeping Nacho’s singular guitar tone at the center. Nacho Salmeron was clearly using this record to wrestle with his feelings about the pandemic. It’s to his credit that his public Blues Therapy is an enjoyable and ultimately positive ride.

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