The Singer/Songwriter genre is the one genre that seems to become oversaturated quickly. That being said, here is a worthy addition to that genre, in the form of Justin Black.

here is a little background on Justin, taken from Justin Black’s Myspace:

What happens when you have an artist who has battled
throat cancer, a removed lung and was told countless
times he may never sing again? The answer: passion,
determination and conviction. Now team him up with an
explosive band and you end up with something real,
something epic, something that could start self revolutions
and inspire hope in people everywhere.

JBLACK believes the purpose of music is to stimulate your mind, heart and soul. This is a philosophy he lives by. The sound modern classic, The influences range from Neil Young, Ben Harper, Dylan, Fiona Apple, Led Zeppelin, U2, Jeff Buckley, Pink Floyd, Beatles to PJ Harvey, Terry Reid, Black Crowes, Temple of the Dog and The Soundtrack Of Our Lives.

JBLACK is ready to bring a revolution, and with a story like
this and the songs to match he is here to make
positives out of negatives with a sound that is
worthy of your attention.

So, the first thing that can be said from that is that Justin should have all of our admiration for overcoming such huge obstacles. Second, the range of influences is very interesting but seems accurate.

The songs Justin sent to me were from his The Devil Tree EP. The title track channels Gavin DeGraw right from the start. As soon as the song starts, just by the inflection in Justin’s voice, you can hear the influence coming through.

A song like ‘Don’t Think’, on the other hand, has almost a Dave Matthews Band feel to it because of the brass section. However, it is definitely less ‘jammy’ than a DMB song.

I highly recommend that you visit Justin Black’s website, http://www.justinblack.net/mp3/, because there are about another dozen and a half tracks there.

Also, to anyone in the Texas area, Justin will be playing at the South By Southwest Festival this year - something I have ALWAYS wanted to go to - so be sure to check that out as well. For the specific dates and where he will be performing at, check Justin Black’s Myspace.

2010, Justin Black and Big Heart, Justin Black

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