“Irresistible contemporary blues-rock street-level grit and soul”
–Billboard
“Phenomenal and funky…soulful vocals and inspired blues-rock guitar”
–Washington Post
“Tommy Castro And The Painkillers are a crackling, stripped-down bandwith plenty of grit and a rocking soul”
–Jambands.com
Tommy Castro And The Painkillers, touring in support of their latest Alligator Records album, THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, will give two free performances at the Black Oak Casino in Tuolumne on Thursday, February 12 and Friday, February 13, 2015. Award-winning guitarist/vocalist/songwriter Castro is famed for his signature brand of tough, rocking rhythm and blues, thrilling fans around the world with his incendiary live performances. With his eyes and ears firmly on the future, Castro, along with The Painkillers – original Tommy Castro Band bassist Randy McDonald, Bowen Brown on drums and James Pace on keyboards – has stripped his music down to its raw essence as he rockets into the next phase of his storied career. Castro And The Painkillers recently received a 2014 Blues Blast Music Award for Rock Blues Album Of The Year (for THE DEVIL YOU KNOW). Concert information is as follows:
Date: Thursday, February 12 and Friday, February 13, 2015
Venue: Black Oak Casino – Willow Creek Lounge
Address: 19400 Tuolumne Road North
City: Tuolumne, CA
Phone: 877-747-8777
Showtimes: 8:00pm (February 12) / 9:00pm (February 13) Ticket price:
Free admission
Website: www.blackoakcasino.com
THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, recorded in the Bay Area with his fiery new band The Painkillers, and produced by Castro and Bonnie Hayes, is a contemporary blues tour-de-force. The album is an untamed, high-energy set of 13 songs, including nine written or co-written by Castro. “For the new album I challenged myself to add different sounds and new rhythms to my style while remaining true to my roots. I wrote using ideas for songs and ideas for sounds together in a way I’d never done before,” explains Castro, “using drum rhythms to drive the lyrics.” The tracks — melodic and biting, energetic and fun — are brought to life with sonic authority by McDonald, Pace and original Painkillers drummer Byron Cage.
In addition, many of Castro’s friends and admirers, including Alligator label-mates Marcia Ball and The Holmes Brothers, add their talents to the proceedings. Other guests include guitarists Joe Bonamassa and Mark Karan, guitarist/vocalist Tab Benoit, vocalists Samantha Fish and Tasha Taylor, and harmonica player Magic Dick. Each song comes loaded with
emotional depth and muscular hooks courtesy of Castro’s soulful singing, insightful lyrics, and dynamic, potent guitar playing.
With THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, Castro — The Painkillers blazing behind him — unleashes an instant classic. According to Blurt, “Castro is one of the greatest blues guitarists, songwriters and entertainers in the world today.”
After years of playing guitar-driven blues and R&B backed by a tight horn section, Castro introduced The Painkillers live in 2012, creating a lean, mean four-piece lineup, with the drum chair now held by David Tucker. Fueled by Tommy’s voice and guitar plus bass, drums and keyboards, the band released the 45rpm single Greedy / That’s All I Got later that
year (both songs are included as bonus tracks on the new CD). Greedy quickly became one of Castro’s most-requested songs. An attention-grabbing video for Greedy has already received over 150,000 views on YouTube. The Chicago Sun-Times calls his music “fiery and soul-drenched.”
Castro views the harder-edged sound of The Painkillers as a natural extension of the music he’s been making since he was a teenager. “The Painkillers really get me back to my roots. It feels to me a lot more like it did when I first started playing with my friends as a kid. Bands were always just three or four guys playing for the fun of it,”Castro recalls. Now, Tommy Castro And The Painkillers are pushing the music to another level.
Tommy Castro And The Painkillers are anxious to bring THE DEVIL YOU KNOW to life on stage night after night, personally connecting with their fans all over the world. “A lot of folks are having hard times these days,” Castro says, “and they need something to lift them up and make them smile. Our music kills the pain.”
