Photo: GA-20 by Jon Medina
GA-20 Shares Their New Song & Video “Dry Run”
From their Third Studio Album ‘Crackdown’
Out September 9, 2022
Today, acclaimed blues, roots-rock, and country revival trio GA-20 are thrilled to release “Dry Run” which premiered earlier this week via Bluegrass Situation. “Dry Run follows the release of “Easy on the Eyes” from the band’s third studio album Crackdown, due out September 9 via Karma Chief Records / Colemine Records. In their new collection of songs, GA-20 channel a throwback blues sound with a facelift fit for modern day ears — complete with gritty and melodic tunes that the jukeboxes of 2022 will most certainly be spinning.
“‘Dry Run’ is a “tear in my beer” country blues story of being strung along and ghosted by a girl who Pat was sweet on. When he eventually ran into her a while later and figured it all out.” Pat says he wrote the melody in his head on the drive home, feeling like a sucker. “This girl I thought was really into me was just practicing her flirting,” he tells audiences, and they always laugh and nod. We had all been listening to a lot of country tunes at the time and that Jimmy Reed and Lazy Lester influence slipped in.”
Watch “Dry Run”
Listen to “Dry Run” HERE
About GA-20:
GA-20 clearly is on to something big. It’s a movement, a new traditional blues revival. The dynamic, throwback blues trio are disciples of the place where traditional blues, country and rock ‘n’ roll intersect. “We make records that we would want to listen to,” says guitarist Matt Stubbs. “It’s our take on the song-based traditional electric blues we love.” Stubbs and guitarist/vocalist Pat Faherty, and drummer Tim Carman have been at the forefront of this traditional blues revival since they first formed in 2018. It’s no wonder they skyrocketed to the top of the Billboard Blues Charts.
“Since we started the band we’ve focused on the story, the melody, and on creating a mood. Playing live as much as we do, we’re finding more and more that people are discovering how cool it all is. Traditional country, soul and funk music have all had these massive recent revivals, but traditional blues so far has not.” With their new Colemine album, Crackdown, and an intensive tour schedule, that’s all about to change.
On Crackdown, GA-20’s third full-length release, the band creates an unvarnished, ramshackle blues that is at once traditional and refreshingly modern. Expanding on their previous releases (2019’s Lonely Soul and 2021’s Try It…You Might Like It! GA-20 Does Hound Dog Taylor) GA-20 finds inspiration on the edges of the genre, where early electric blues first converged with country and rock ‘n’ roll. The album’s nine original songs include the loping Louisiana-flavored Dry Run, the dirty and bare-bones Easy On The Eyes and the melodic garage tinge of Fairweather Friend. With tight, propulsive performances and a brevity and punk energy reminiscent of The Ramones, Crackdown is rowdy and fun, filled with instantly memorable and well-crafted songs.
Crackdown was recorded live at famed Q Division Studios in Somerville, Massachusetts, and, like GA-20’s previous releases, produced by Stubbs. “We set up the drums and amps all in one room, using a limited number of microphones and employing some vintage recording techniques,” explains Stubbs. “We brought in a lot of old amps and guitars and had fun exploring different amp/guitar combinations, and took a good amount of time dialing in the drum and guitar sounds before getting down to work.”
Since first forming in 2018, GA-20 has drawn inspiration for their old-school sounds from the music they love by artists such as Otis Rush, J.B. Lenoir, Howlin’ Wolf, Junior Wells, Hound Dog Taylor, Lloyd Price, Johnny “Guitar” Watson and so many others. Performing with what feels like reckless abandon, GA-20 brings a timeless immediacy to every song they play with a sound that continues to grow and evolve. The Boston Herald calls them, “a magical blues trio.”
Matt Stubbs is a 14-year veteran of legendary blues master Charlie Musselwhite’s touring band, and has performed with James Cotton and John Hammond, among many others. Stubbs met Faherty in Boston, and their mutual love of traditional electric blues, R&B, and rock ‘n’ roll led them to write, perform and eventually record their modern vision of this life-altering music. GA-20 quickly drew a large following, and the band soon signed with acclaimed soul/R&B label Colemine Records, releasing their debut, Lonely Soul, in 2019 to widespread critical and popular acclaim. The album – with guests Charlie Musselwhite and Luther Dickinson – premiered in the #2 position on the Billboard Blues Chart. With new drummer Tim Carman on board, their 2020 EP Live Vol. 1, debuted at #1.
GA-20 is currently on tour. For tour dates see HERE.
Cool old school stuff!