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ity and bullet gloves, Miller delivers album using only his unique collection
of acoustic guitars and his
top eight at the Orpheum The-
her own unique rhythm using unconventional
percussion setups 1929 National resonator guitar.
such as the washboard, spoons,
cajón, and duct tape. Together
they merge various elements of McCarthy and
blues, folk, and classic rock to create
their own distinctive sound.
Blues Society of
Headley
Northwest Florida
Mark Telesca
McCarthy and Headley are a blues
duo based in Pensacola, Florida,
South Florida
Blues Society
featuring Mike McCarthy and Justin
Headley. Their friendship was
As well as being a songwriter, formed at the IBC a few years ago
singer, and guitarist, Mark Telesca
spent years as a bassist and Headley with a band. They
when McCarthy was playing solo
backing up many artists. He has enjoyed each other’s talents, and
been a semifinalist in the IBC have been playing together ever
band competition twice before,
Mick Kidd with
since. The duo are rooted in stomp
fronting his former band, Blues and Hill Country blues, paying
Dragon, and with his own band. homage in their original material to
In 2014 he started a solo career the likes of Hound Dog Taylor and
playing acoustic guitar in the vein Junior Kimbrough, to name a few.
of Charlie Patton, Son House, et The real power of the duo comes
al., focusing on pre-World War II from McCarthy’s songwriting; he
blues, Americana, and his own can tug on your heartstrings and
music. This is his first time competing
as a solo act, combining know . . . all at the same time.
put a boot in your . . . well, you
blues roots with a modern twist.
His use of different open tunings
gives him a unique sound, with Micah Kesselring
his lower-register voice a perfect
The Blues Jazz and
complement to the finger-style
Folk Music Society
guitar work and storytelling of his
Micah Kesselring is a 22-year-old
mostly original compositions.
acoustic blues musician hailing
from Columbus, Ohio. Raised in a
Max Russell
log cabin nestled in the foothills of
the Appalachian Mountains, Kesselring
began playing blues music
The Music Preservation
Society
professionally at the age of 14. He
Maxwell Russell was born and has since gone on to perform internationally,
and has self-released
raised in northwestern Alabama,
home to the famous Muscle two albums. Known for his soulful,
Shoals sound and blues legend dynamic vocals and Delta-bluesstyle
guitar playing, He is a com-
W.C. Handy. Russell started playing
the guitar as a youngster, but his pletely self-taught musician who is
journey into the music business widely regarded as one of the most
began at age 26, forming bands promising young acoustic blues
along the way and playing his originals
at gigs. Some of his influ-
musicians on the circuit today.
ences are old-school Delta music,
slide, boogie, shuffles, swing, and Michael Schatte
old rock and roll. In 2006 he won Toronto Blues Society
first place in a blues challenge in
Birmingham, Alabama, and competed
in Memphis at the IBC. He competition, Michael Schatte re-
A finalist in the 2015 IBC band
has two albums of original music turns to Memphis this year as a
with his band the Shakedown solo performer with the same energy
and musical daredevilry that
Kings, and a solo Delta blues
saw his band reach last year’s
140 H SOLO/DUO The Blues Foundation • blues.org
atre. Schatte is a Toronto-based
guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter
who has been called “a dream
of a guitar player, a dashing performer,
but also a thoughtful and
self-conscious artist” (Numéro
Cinq magazine) and “Canada’s
hidden treasure” (Stratford Rib
and Bluesfest). With influences
as diverse as Peter Green, John
Lee Hooker, Danny Gatton, and
Davey Graham, Michael will prove
that his acoustic fingerstyle boogie
is just as enticing and exciting
as his electric trio work.
Dave Blight
Adelaide Roots and
Blues Association
Lovers of harpin,’ slidin,’ stompin’
acoustic blues will have no trouble
seeing why Mick Kidd and David
Blight were named Outstanding
Solo/Duo at the 2014 South Australian
Blues and Roots Awards,
with Kidd picking up Outstanding
Male Performer to boot. With both
of them having independently paid
their dues on the Australian music
scene for over 20 years, their recent
collaboration was bound to
produce something special, and it
did, with their album Winter Sun
reaching the top 10 on the Australian
blues charts. Together Kidd
and Blight produce authentic blues
with a dynamic sound that almost
belies the fact that there are only
the two of them on the stage, such
is the power of their delivery.
The Mighty Orq
Houston Blues Society
The Mighty Orq has been performing
solo and with his band across
the U.S. and Europe since 2002.
An IBC finalist in 2011 and 2012,
he has won multiple awards and
has released six albums and an
instructional DVD for solo resonator
slide guitar. Orq is a uniquely
talented singer, songwriter, and
multi-instrumentalist with a focus
on the American roots music
genres, whose seventh album,
Love in a Hurricane, is slated for
release in early 2016 on the independent
Americana/blues label
Connor Ray Music. Look forward
to a unique presentation of blues
delivered with a soulful passion
from this remarkable talent.
Mike and the Mojo
Maine Blues Society
Mike and the Mojo is an acoustic
blues partnership between Mike
Schools on guitar and Chris Hamer
on bass that brings power and
passion to their original blues compositions.
Schools began guitar at
an early age and traversed the folk
and rock genres on the way to his
home with the blues. He has won
various guitar and band competitions
along the way. After winning
the Maine Blues Society’s 2016
competition, he said, “It’s a major
validation of the work I’ve put into
the writing and relationship with
the blues I’ve been developing
over the years.” Hamer’s bass supplies
structure and a solid backup
to complete the duo’s mojo.
Miss Whiskey
Melbourne Blues
Appreciation Society
The gritty female blues duo Miss
Whiskey put an original stamp on
harmonica-driven swamp blues.
Formed in 2014 to focus on the
music they love, they quickly made
their mark on the blues scene in
Melbourne, Australia. With Anna
Scionti on guitar, slide, stomp, and
vocals, and Julie Noble on harmonica,
these ladies mix up their own
original music with classic blues
standards from the greats. With a
raw and original sound, Miss Whiskey
will keep you moving, clapping,
and hollering, and your foot a-
stomping! Scionti’s haunting, gravelly
vocals and percussive guitar
style combined with Noble’s howling
harmonica will leave you only
wanting more of Miss Whiskey.
32nd International Blues Challenge
SOLO/DUO H 141