About The Hardchargers
An electrified reimagining of Country Blues, Roots /Blues and Roadhouse Rock
The Hardchargers Description
“It’s so quirky and unique even I find it difficult to describe, so here’s the closest analogy I can think of: it’s what might ensue if Jimi Hendrix met Velvet Underground on Muddy Waters’ front porch and then downed a crate of Jack Daniels whilst jamming for a crowd of insatiable sex-crazed groupies. . . . only louder, and crazier! ” Frances Burscough, (Belfast Telegraph May 2013)
“They’re magnificent! … a joyous rumblethump beat, raw and syncopated and doused in the cranky old methods of Clarksdale and Chicago. ” Stuart Bailie (BBC Radio Ulster April 2013)
“Dirty Blues from Belfast”. . . Taking Blues /Roots /Rock into exciting mercenary territory from aggressive washboard /resonator driven Roots Music, to provocative raunchy roadhouse style Blues rock. The HardChargers have performed across the island of Ireland since 2009, performing at a stellar list of music & arts festivals, opening for cult US artists Bob Log III and Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band, Austrailia’s The Beards; The Waterboys and recently The Alabama 3 A recent Belfast gig prompted the legendary Terri Hooley to describe them as “My kind of fecking band”.
Incognito Music Magazine, (US) “The sound of this band might be described as low-down, but it’s also pretty clean. The three guys in this band sure know what they’re doing with their instruments. ”
Blues Matters! Issues 65 /68 (2012). . . “Intensity of punk proportions”
Following 2011’s “Bumpin’ and Grindin’” EP, the band released three AA singles in 2013 “Fine and Filthy c /w Just Somebody’s Friend” released May 4th 2013; “Spanner in your Works c /w JoJo” Released July 4th 2013, and “Little Too Late c /w No Stone Unturned” on October 31st 2013.
Chord Blossom online magazine recently reviewed all three singles, saying of “Fine and Filthy c /w Just Somebody’s Friend”: “The HardChargers are the genuine article, ‘Fine and Filthy’ does not hang about; coming in on the back of a delicious freight-train, almost Rock-a-Billy beat relentless throughout. The riff is simplicity itself backed up by insistent bass and providing the perfect backdrop for Todd’s deliciously irreverent tale of the perfect woman ……
And of “Spanner in your Works c /w JoJo” : “Three (very) white dudes from Belfast playing genuine Blues music …it virtually explodes out of your speakers, and batters along with no rhythmical let-up; it’s short and to the point. ‘Jojo’ features slide guitar and, if anything, is even more irreverent and sleazy than ‘Spanner…’
Of “Little Too Late c /w No Stone Unturned” : “Coming in on a simple-but-effective bassline, exploding into the irreverent fayre we’ve come to expect, with deep backing vocals giving the overall vocal sound a real depth and menace. A lyrical classic, with the protagonist desiring just a little too much of everything. ‘No Stone Unturned’ is mean & moody and by the time it slithers its way back into the swamp, you just wanna stick it back on again.
“The band provide a punishing sound. Described in their Irish homeland as 'Dirty Blues from Belfast’ And who are we to argue! . the band build a bridge between Delta-influenced acoustic blues and extremely tight rock guitar grooves, using Dobro, washboard and heavy guitar grooves create a unique picture. The HardChargers know their genre like no one else, and they do it with style! Paul Verhaege (Keys and Chords Magazine, Netherlands 2013)
The HardChargers have recently finished recording a four track EP in Graham House Recording Studios, Belfast which is set to be released early in 2015, with a full length vinyl release due by spring 2015.
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