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Blues fans should check out Omahan Cox, if not at Mick's, then soon. Cox's acoustic sound is rooted in country blues and his vocals remind me of Harry Manx with overtones of Bob Dylan and John Prine in his cadence and delivery.
Cox released Folker's Travels (Uncle Larry Records) in late 2007. The disc is very good, packaged with engaging, all-original songs, fine playing and spare but thoughtful production. Cox can be heard at the Barley St. Tavern in Benson Friday, Jan. 11th at 9pm. Admission is FREE. Opener Chris Logeman (of the Whiskey Pistols) will play a solo set.
See mattcoxmusic.net or Cox's MySpace for music samples.
-B.J. Huchtemann - The Reader
Discography
Folker's Travels -- 2007
Stick Your Neck Out -- 2006
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Bio
After first picking up a 6-string at the ripe age of 14, Shenandoah, IA, native Matt Cox has gone on to produce an illustrious catalog of timeless songs, hymns full of lonely highways, distillery lunch breaks, longing and realization. After handling sticks for Phoenix, AZ, based Junk Ditch Road for a short stint in 2002 then later establishing his self as a vibrant part of the Omaha singer/songwriter scene, Cox released the celebrated Stick Your Neck Out in 2006. Playing local stages like Mick’s Music & Bar, The Saddle Creek Bar, and the P.S. Collective, and hitting venues along the California coast, in San Francisco, and throughout the Southwest allowed Cox to bring his foot-stomping, white-boy blues & old-time country to a burgeoning host of fans.
Folker’s Travels is in some ways a more personal album than its predecessor, and while the production quality on the new album is much stronger, that inherent raw-realness comes through every bit as sincere. Working with Josh Krohn (Southpaw Bluegrass Band) on fiddle and co-producer, mixer, mastering engineer Kirk Webb laying down a touch of mandolin magic, Folker’s hints at everything great about the likes of Neil Young, John Prine, and fellow IA native Greg Brown.
Tracks like the elegantly romping, semi-otherworldly “Soldier’s Call” and the crowd favorite “Getaway Sally,” find Cox not only writing in top-notch form but also performing with a rarely found authenticity and apparent soul, making some of his smoky-barroom shows some of the most talked about evenings of the year. Aside from recalling “Sheriff’s who just want to talk” in a unique literary voice, Cox asks the listener to think with him, to take often-strange side trips in their own mind as in the lyrically powerful “Talkin’ Religion (Before the Devils Knows I’m Dead).”
Sharing stages with the likes of hometown hero Sarah Benck, The Weary Boys, indie-folk sensation Outlaw Con Bandana and Trainwreck Riders, Cox has developed into one of Omaha, NE’s, most sought out live shows. After playing and attending the industry mecca SXSW last March, Cox has been working diligently on recording the best album of his already accomplished repertoire.
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