THE INSOMNIACS "LEFT COAST BLUES" Source: Walla Walla Date: 04/2008 Writer: n/a

The Walla Walla Blues Society proudly presents The Insomniacs at
CrossRoads Steakhouse, 201 East Rees, Walla Walla, WA on Saturday, April 12th , 8:00 - 11:00 pm, Cover $10 and tickets will be available at Hot Poop Records and Crossroads Steakhouse. Crossroads will be serving an awesome buffet and reservations are required. (509-522-1200). Only 150 tickets will be sold to this event and they WILL sell out. Get your tickets as soon as they go on sale if you don't want to miss out.

They play vintage instruments and channel a blues style from the 1950s, but there is a distinct new cyberspace bent to Delta Groove's blues award winning quartet, The Insomniacs.

These musicians who have quickly jumped into the top tier of clubs and whose disc hit No. 5 on the blues charts and has been highly ranked since its release, 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.

The Blues community recognized their talent early on. They won a Muddy Award from Oregon's prestigious Cascade Blues Association for Best New Act of 2006 and Best Contemporary Act of 2007. They are nominated for a 2008 Best New Artist Debut Award from The Blues Foundation and the song "Crime Scene" has been named one of the top 20 contemporary blues songs for 2007 by BluesCritic.com.

Guitarist Vyasa Dodson, whose exotic name is a Sanskrit gift from his Northern California mother, had a revelation when he switched from emulating Stevie Ray Vaughan and Eric Clapton to studying blues masters such as Junior Watson, Tiny Grimes, Johnny “Guitar'' Watson, Charlie Christian, and Little Charlie Baty.

“The Blues isn't dead,” says singer and guitarist Vyasa Dodson, 26, “It's just going in different directions. B.B. King and Buddy Guy got started when they were young. The same thing is happening today.”

“Blues music just speaks to me,” says bassist Dean Mueller, who had his mind blown teaching at Centrum's Port Townsend Country Blues Festival, where he jammed with John Cephas, Louisiana Red and Honeyboy Edwards. “It was just so cool. I knew I had found my home.”

Together with Alex Shakeri on keys 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. You can't get that energy from a computer, the Internet, MySpace or a DVD.

Put on your dancing shoes before you take a test drive of “Left Coast Blues” and check it out yourself.

The last thing you'll want to do is sleep.