The Insomniacs combine guitar-driven, up-tempo jump blues with the vocal richness and instrumental precision of swing for a sound that is simultaneously energetic and smooth. The quartet was nominated in 2008 for a Blues Music Award in the “Best New Artist” category; they won a Muddy Award from Oregon’s prestigious Cascade Blues Association for Best New Act of 2006 and Best Contemporary Act of 2007, and their song “Crime Scene” was named one of the top 20 contemporary blues songs for 2007 by BluesCritics.com.

The Insomniacs play vintage instruments and channel a blues style from the 1950s, but there is a distinct cyberspace bent to the jump blues quartet. These young musicians tour endless highways in a beat up van, babying a gut-string upright, the 1951 Fender “Nocaster” guitar, the 1964 Framus Star Bass and their Magnatone and Ampeg tube amps; but they fill the long drives between gigs surfing the web on wireless laptops, looking at the MySpace and Facebook friends lists of the clubs down the road, and personally e-mailing blues fans to get them to listen to the band and come to the show. Guitarist Vyasa Dodson emulates the jump blues masters such as Junior Watson and Little Charlie Baty; while bassist Dean Mueller attributes his blues conversion to jamming with John Cephas, Louisiana Red and Honeyboy Edwards. Together with Alex Shakeri on keyboards and Dave Melyan on drums they bust out with an original mix of blues, swing, jump, and roots rock & roll that has crowds dancing the night away.

Last year, the Insomniacs first CD, Left Coast Blues (Delta Groove Music, 2007), hit No. 5 on the blues charts. The ten original tracks are a seamless continuation of the blues traditions of the 1950’s that combine the rich voice and guitar prowess of Dodson with a perfectly balanced ensemble of bass, keyboards and drums. The tracks sound contemporary, but as if they were borrowed from blues masters; and in reality, the majority was written by 25 year old Dodson. It’s a remarkable combination of old and new, and every note is danceable.