" HOT LICKS, CHEAP KICKS, PRETTY WOMEN AND IT'S A REAL SHORT TRIP,
LETS GO, HIT THE ROAD, SCRATCHIN CIRCLES ON THE OLD DANCEFLOOR "

- JD McPherson, Scratchin Circles

Fast forward to just a few months ago and I got back into it. Started exploring more tracks from the new(ish)ly released album Signs and Signifiers and BAM! The more I listened the more I wanted to hear of this rock ‘n’ roll blues explosion! What started as a fall down the rabbit hole on YouTube turned into full blown love and I just HAD to buy the album off Amazon.

Best decision I ever made! I have listened to it practically non-stop since I got it and I’m STILL not sick of it! An extremely clever album, I adore every single track on it – a quality I find so rare these days. Normally I love a couple of tracks off an album and find myself skipping over the others but every track on this album is just as addictive as the next.

Released in April of 2011, the album was recorded in a 100% analogue studio and is breaking the mould for many vintage rock recordings. Singer-songwriter JD McPherson channels the swinging blues greats of old across the 12 tracks of Signs and Signifiers with songs ranging from fevered beats and original material to covers of old rhythm and blues numbers. Recorded through vintage microphones, the flat tyre beat and coarse velvet vocals of JD are perfectly complemented by that old time distorted sound.

From humble visual art beginnings in Broken Arrow Oklahoma, JD McPherson was named as 2011 ‘artist you should know’ by NPR and has been touring his home country with his own brand of retro blues-a-billy.

I love love LOVE this album and as I sit here and try to pick a favourite to recommend to you I struggle not to list each 12 tracks. But I can’t whittle it down by much because each is totally worth checking out and my absolute favourites are North Side Gal, Country Boy, Fire Bug, Wolf Teeth, Your Love (All I'm Missing), Scratchin Circles and Dimes For Nickels.

Seriously, YouTube them!