Mike Delledera is a singer-songwriter based in New York. Having studied jazz music, it was natural for him to include part of that knowledge into his writing style. And with Delledera also studying rock guitar, the two parts of his education came together to create a musical hybrid that also seems to include jazz influence, as well. That combination of rock, jazz and blues gives Delledera the freedom to create music with an ever-changing feel to it. To help bring the sound of his music to life, Mike Delledera calls upon many talented musicians with the ability to play as many styles as required to make up the body of his musical ensemble known as The Mike Delledera Band. Recently, The Mike Delledera Band created a new release called WakeUpSideDowntown.
WakeUpSideDowntown by The Mike Delledera Band begins with the song “Silver Ruby Diamonds Blues”. With that type of name, you would figure it would be a track that had a lot of blues feeling to it. In this case, “Silver Ruby Diamonds Blues” is a track that sounds like something that was influenced by Michael Nesmith and the First National Band. The pop-rock track has a light feel to the music and features a sound that contains steel guitar and piano that help add that Country flavor to the song. The resulting song has a jam band feel to it that would also end up making fans of The Grateful Dead happy.
The track “Sugar Face” finds The Mike Delledera Band taking their music back a few decades to the years after the time of Woodstock. The resulting rock song will instantly have you thinking of another song with “sugar” in the title- “Sugar Shack” from Jimmy Gilmer and The Fireballs. Like that song from years gone by, the track from Mike Delledera has an easy rock feel and has simple lyrics that are easy to sing along with.
The song “Gypsy Soul” is easily the first track on the album of WakeUpSideDowntown from The Mike Delledera Band that would fit on today’s radio airwaves. The majority of the music on the track feels like something that could have come from an artist such as Jack Johnson then adds a little Santana-inspired guitar playing and you have a track that is ready-made for today’s music listeners.
As you listen to the new release from The Mike Delledera Band, the music changes moods and sounds throughout the nine tracks. While the first three songs on WakeUpSideDowntown have rock feels to their bases, the track “Bounce” sends the music in a completely different direction as the track has a rock/reggae sound. As the title of “Bounce” might suggest, the track has an easy, bouncy pace to it. The track feels as authentic as much as the music that is being created by artists who make reggae music full time.
The jam band feeling from the song “Silver Ruby Diamonds Blues” returns in the song “Main Street USA” with a stronger rock base to it. The track allows for the guitar and keyboard to take center stage for majority of the song. The jam band feel of the music goes well with the lyrics that make people stop and think.
“Can’t Stop Rockin’,” like “Silver Ruby Diamonds Blues” before it, is a track that features a sound that you wouldn’t expect from the title of the track. This track features the band going for a jazzy feel to their music. The brasses help add a large amount of jazz sound to the track. The jazz sound mixed with the groove being created by the rest of the musicians gives the track yet another unique musical approach on an album that has already had so many different and exciting combinations.
The WakeUpSideDowntown album by The Mike Delledera Band comes to a close with the track “The Music Echoes On”. Falling somewhere between folk/rock and country music, the song has a sound and feeling that is very reminiscent of songs that were released by the band The Lovin’ Spoonful. The track brings the WakeUpSideDowntown album to a close on a gentle note.
Throughout the nine tracks that make up The WakeUpSideDowntown album by The Mike Delledera Band, the music continuously shifts and switches directions. The ever-shifting combination of rock, jazz, blues and country within the music of each track guarantees a new approach to each song. The talented musicians that helped Mike Delledera create this album are just as important to the overall feel of the release as Delledera is. Together, The Mike Delledera Band has created a release that could easily become a favorite album in your collection as it includes many different musical genres and covers almost any taste in music.
Reviewer: Matheson Kamin
Rating: **** (four stars)
Click HERE for the live video to “Sugar Face” by The Mike Delledera Band.
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