JJ Grey & Mofro at the Rhythm Section Auditorium -- July 27.
Saturday, July 27, 7:30 p.m.
Rhythm Section Auditorium, 13137 IL-78, Mt. Carroll IL
Performing in support of their new recording Olustee, an album that Relix magazine called "a blend of reflection, raucousness, introspection, and exultation," the talents of JJ Grey & Mofro headline a July 27 concert at Mt. Carroll's Rhythm Section Auditorium, Relix adding that "their music encapsulates the spirit of 21st-century Southern swamp boogie, a genre which JJ Grey has been instrumental in defining.”
As detailed at JJGrey.com, "Since his first album, Blackwater, back in 2001, Grey has been releasing deeply moving, masterfully written, funkified rock and front porch Southern soul music. Now, with his new album, Olustee – his tenth and first in nine years, and the first he has self-produced – Grey is back, singing his personal stories with universal themes of redemption, rebirth, hard luck, and inner peace. With his music, Grey also celebrates good times with lifelong friends, oftentimes mixing the carnal with the cerebral in the very same song. Fueled by his vividly detailed, timeless originals spun from his own life and experiences in the Northern Florida swampland, Grey’s gritty baritone drips with honest passion and testifies with a preacher’s foot-pounding fervor.
"With Olustee, JJ Grey has once again pushed the boundaries of his own creative musical, lyrical and vocal talents, delivering an album that is destined to become a stone-cold classic. Many of the songs are all steeped in the mythical Southern stories of his ancestral Florida home and filled with people from JJ’s life. The songs overflow with the sights and sounds of the region as told through the eyes of a poet and sung with pure, unvarnished soul. The album’s 10 songs range from the introspective opener 'The Sea' to the raucous, celebratory first radio single, 'Wonderland,' to an escape from an out-of-control wildfire in the title track, to the inward-looking closer, 'Deeper Than Belief.' Singing of his own personal triumphs and struggles, his hopes and desires, his friends and family, Grey’s message is simple and strong: respect the natural world and always try to live in the moment. And never forget the importance of having a good time.
"Grey made his recording debut in 2001 with Blackwater, following up in 2004 with Lochloosa. Both albums were released on the Fog City label under the name Mofro, a moniker the young Grey chose to describe his music and sound while still working his day job at a lumberyard. He has since used the word to name his band of world-class players. In 2007, Grey signed with Alligator Records and released a string of five popular and successful albums: Country Ghetto, 2008's Orange Blossoms, 2010's Georgia Warhorse, 2011’s live CD/DVD Brighter Days and 2013’s This River. Ol’ Glory was released on the Provogue label in 2015. Throughout this amazing run of releases, press, radio and years of touring helped catapult JJ Grey & Mofro further into the mainstream.
“JJ Grey & Mofro have played countless festivals, including Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Wakarusa, Austin City Limits Festival, Byron Bay Blues Festival (Australia), Montreal Jazz Festival and Fuji Rock (Japan). Over the course of his career, Grey has shared stages with the likes of Lenny Kravitz, B.B. King, The Allman Brothers Band, The Black Crowes, Los Lobos, Jeff Beck, Ben Harper, Booker T. Jones, Mavis Staples, and many others. Grey and his band continue to play over 75 shows a year across the U.S. and around the world.
“JJ's songs have appeared in films and on television, including on House of Cards, Criminal Minds, Bones, House, Flashpoint, Crash, Friday Night Lights, The Glades, The Deadliest Catch, and in films including The Hoot and The Gray Man. In November 2009, JJ wrote his first film score for the critically-acclaimed, Emmy Award-winning documentary The Good Soldier, which appeared in theatres and on Bill Moyers Journal on PBS.”
JJ Grey & Mofro take the stage in Mt. Carroll on July 27, admission to the 7:30 p.m. concert event is $40-60, and more information and tickets are available by calling (815)238-1614 and visiting TheRhythmSectionOnline.com.
