Music
Press
Tuesday 7th August 2007
The end of the night, which had been dedicated to various local media organisations, was crowned by an impromptu jam at the back of the room by the ever surprising French duo, Mountain Men, who dumfounded those present - organisers and musicians alike – with an effervescent version of "When the saints go marching in"... Mat on guitar and Barefoot Iano on harmonica. Attracted by the graceful sounds of these two extraterrestrials from the French circuit, Nanette Workman came over personally to say hi and offer her compliments! What better way to begin our journey in the Land of the Blues….
Saturday 11th August 2007 :
A long festival day begins with the Mountain Men in the acoustic tent in the middle of the occupied zone. A truly enjoyable moment offered by Mat and Iano as they revisit blues standards in their own way – mixing a lively guitar and a cavernous voice with a harmonica unlimited in its beauty! Although the crowd was not very large, those present appreciated, and rightly so, the show put on by this group straight from the Blues-sur-Seine band playoff, and a large number left with a copy of the excellent album of these two superb artists from the Alps.
- By Fred Delforge http://www.zicazic.com/accueil.htm
Discography
2005 Mat with Iano - Mountain Men
First album, soon to be out of print.
Photos
Bio
Mountain Men is an acoustic blues duo from somewhere in the south eastern French Alps.
"Discovered" in 2006 at a band play-off for the major French festival "Blues sur Seine", near Paris, and were invited by the Montréal Festiblues to come do their thing in August 2007.
From high on the mountain, Mr. Mat fingerpicks his trusty Gibson, beats on his National resonator, and sings. Influenced by the pioneers of the Blues...Robert Johnson, Son House, Charlie Patton, Skip James, as well as artists like Keb Mo and Eric Bibb, Mat performs with a rare intensity.
Once you hear him sing you won't forget that voice.
From the valley below, Barefoot Iano plays harmonica. Noted especially for his presence on stage, Iano was Australian 1993 harmonica champion, and placed 4th in the blues/rock category of the 1993 and 1997 trossingen world harmonica championships.
His main line : "music comes first".
Since meeting in 2005, they've had a lot of fun...and count on having a whole bunch more.
To hear and see more check their myspace at http://www.myspace.com/mrmatmountainmen
Links
