Biography
TURCHI www.theturchi.com is the essence of American roots music, blending the slide-guitar-boogie and kudzu-fuzz of the North Mississippi Hill Country with the songwriting styles of traditional storytelling and folk narrative. Growing out of a collage of influences ranging from Mississippi Fred McDowell, R.L. Burnside, Kenny Brown, and Luther Dickinson to Randy Newman, Josh Ritter, and Lucinda Williams, TURCHI recreates the scenes, sounds, and stories embedded in the ever-changing American landscape.
The band’s debut album “Road Ends in Water,” was released in March 2012 on Devil Down Records, and was compared to the early work of the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan terms of songwriting, vocals, energy, and spirit, as well as with the White Stripes, Drive-By Truckers, and Black Keys. The album was celebrated internationally as a prime example of raw North Mississippi boogie in a refreshed and modernized form. TURCHI finished tracking their second full-length album at Ardent Studios in December 2012, and recorded a live album in Lafayette, Louisiana during their November tour, making for two upcoming 2013 releases.
Read full biography ↓
The band was founded in 2011 by slide guitarist and singer Reed Turchi, along with drummer Cameron Weeks (Black Skies/Aminal/Some Army). Together with bassist/guitarist Chris Reali they recorded the debut album “Road Ends in Water” in Chapel Hill in early 2012, which features Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars/Black Crowes) on three tracks. The album, released on Devil Down Records, immediately received acclaim worldwide as a prime example of raw North Mississippi boogie music in a modernized form.
TURCHI is currently touring nationwide in support of “Road Ends in Water,’ and will be going back into the studio late this fall to begin work on their second album.
“He doesn’t sound like anyone else, nor does he have to, and his song-writing ability displays a maturity beyond his years…with wonderful, thick fuzzy guitar riffs, there’s a synergy on display…highly recommended.” –“Saturday Blues,” South Australia
“TURCHI has done a masterful job presenting his own music…I highly recommend this recording to anyone who likes the pure blues in an unadulterated form done by modern musicians.” – Bman’s Blues Report
“Yes, I know. I’m not supposed to compare anyone to Bob Dylan, but it’s not just the sound, it’s also the storytelling quality that brings Bob Dylan to mind…in an interesting twist in the next song, TURCHI sounds a lot like a young Mick Jagger…this album has everything a blues fan could want.” – Gary Schwind, LA Examiner
“The spiritual flame passed from Fred McDowell to R.L. Burnside to Kenny Brown now lights up the guitar band of TURCHI…the crunch and slide of this blues trio assures that the kudzu boogie will long continue.” –Dennis Rozanski, BluesRag
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.