The explosive British-Norwegian blues guitarist Krissy Matthews is set to release a jam-packed double album Krissy Matthews & Friends and take it around Europe for a 50-date tour throughout Spring 2024.
On 10th May, the brand new double album Krissy Matthews and Friends is set to be released via German label Ruf Records. At the helm is the sensational Krissy Matthews, the guitar pro who recorded three albums, played onstage with John Mayall and with the late great Jeff Healey and received industry advice from the legendary B.B. King, all before turning 18 years old. Following on from his previous record Pizza Man Blues back in 2021, the upcoming new album is stacked with appearances from a wealth of musicians across the modern blues and rock scene. Unsurprisingly, Krissy Matthews & Friends took a whole year to pull together and produce, but with the album featuring the likes of the god of hellfire Arthur Brown, the energetic John Otway, rap metal giants Clawfinger, the esteemed Hamburg Blues Band, and Mancunian powerhouse vocalist Kim Jennett among so many others, this monster of a record is worth the wait.
"It was a long time in the making and I managed to get it done," said Matthews. "I wanted to get all my favourite musicians together that I have met on the road in my career. They are not all here by any means, but a good handful are! I did not want this album to have a box, so there are many different genres from metal to blues and jazz to rock'n'roll. But in the end, it is a Krissy Matthews record."
The album includes 24 songs and is almost 3 hours long with a mix of Krissy's original material and his favourite cover songs. Also appearing on the album are singer Chris Farlowe, Germany's soul queen Inga Rumpf, legendary singer songwriter Stoppok, elite drummers Dennis Chambers & Curt Cress, blues singing dynamite Big Daddy Wilson, guitar heroes Clem Clempson, Siggi Schwarz, Kai Strauss, Miller Anderson, Eric Steckel, Keith Matthews & Danny Bryant, the beautiful voices of Erja Lyytinen, Alice Armstrong, Layla Zoe, Vanja Sky, Heidi Solheim, Marlia Rae, Dani Wilde, Whitney Shay & Cherry Lee Mewis, harmonica royalty Will Wilde, Jimmy Z & Giles Robson and many more talented musicians!
The first single (out 29th March) will be 'Queen', featuring the aforementioned Kim Jennett on vocals on this rocking stomp of a track, sounding huge and sure to go down a treat on tour. "I wrote this song about a particular person in my life at the time I could not stand,' explains Krissy.'It is a song of anger. I needed a real rock voice on this and Kim was the perfect solution. She may be small but the voice that comes out of her is pure dynamite."
Shortly after on 27th April, the next single is entitled 'Why Are You Ashamed of Me?' The track, featuring the stunning and powerful vocal stylings of Heidi Solheim from rock band Pristine, is used as a vessel to vent against the Norwegian government, who refused to grant him a passport and repeatedly refused his appeal, despite being of Norwegian descent on his mother's side. He says, 'It is unfair and I am very angry at the Norwegian system. I guess this is political blues and I want them to make it right.'
Following the single's release, Krissy Matthews will embark on his mammoth European tour. Everywhere the guitarist goes he leaves the crowd in awe. His honest, dynamic and explosive stage show leaves ripples in every venue. Nobody sounds like Krissy, which in today's world is becoming harder and harder to be identified with your own sound. Krissy Matthews has performed thousands of shows across USA, China and Europe sharing the stage with artists such as Toto, Graveyard, Joe Bonamassa, Gregg Allmann, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Beth Hart and Joe Satriani.
The Norwegian leg of the tour will see him touring with his Norwegian lineup Krissy Matthews and the Viking Blues Band feat. Kare Amundsen on drums and Trond Hansen on bass. For the European leg of the tour, Krissy will be joined on some of the shows by amazing guests such as Gerry McAvoy, Gert Lange (Hamburg Blues Band), Malcolm Bruce, Will Wilde, Jess Hayes, Kim Jennett, Marlia Rae, Kai Strauss and Emely Myles. And in the UK, Krissy will bring his fantastic new trio featuring Polish dynamite Slawek Semeniuk on bass and the Belgian thunder Gerry Reynders on drums.
UK TOUR
May
29 Temperance, Leamington Spa, UK 30 Bannerman's Bar, Edinburgh, UK 31 Grayston Unity, Halifax, UK
June
1 The Flying Circus, Newark, UK 2 Bluefunk, Poynton, UK 3 Pizza Express Holborn, London, UK 4 Tuesday Club, Coulsdon, UK 5 Apple Tree, Sittingbourne, UK 6 The Bullingdon, Oxford, UK 7 The Bear, Luton, UK 8 Arts Centre, Hungerford, UK 9 Tree House, Frome, UK
