Davy Knowles Announces New LP ‘‘What Happens Next’

On his aptly-titled Provogue Records’ debut, What Happens Next, out October 22nd, roots singer-songwriter and guitarist Davy Knowles boldly steps forward with timeless and cohesive songwriting; sleek modern production; and a lyrical, play-for-the-song guitar approach informed from soul, folk, rock, and blues. The 12-song album is just as influenced by The Black Keys, Fantastic Negrito, Gary Clark Jr., as it is Muddy Waters, Junior Kimbrough, and R.L. Burnside. It is a cohesive body of work rather than a collection of disparate songs.

“When it came time to record this album, it was all about supporting the songs as opposed to ‘how quickly I can get to the guitar solo’,” the Isle of Man-born, Chicago-based artist says laughing. “I’m not a purist, and the way for roots music to stay relevant is to adapt and progress.”

Produced by Eric Corne (John Mayall, Joe Walsh, Joe Bonamassa), ‘What Happens Next’ is something of a departure from Knowles’s fired-up and reverent take on blues and Americana, featuring poetic songwriting and soulfully emotive vocals that steal the show. The 12-song body of work offers forth a peaks-and-valleys album experience winding through brawny riffs, jazzy blues balladry, and vintage soul before concluding with one of Knowles’s most personal songs released to date. Throughout it all, his guitar playing is brilliantly understated, his rhythm work is deft and dynamic. The album bursts open with, “Light Of The Moon,” a swaggering riff-rocker replete with vibey 1960s organ flourishes, hooky minor-tinged refrains, and impassioned soul-drenched vocals. Here, Davy’s lead breaks drip sustain, vibrato, and sublime bluesy melodicism.

Knowles first burst onto the scene at the age of 20 with his band Back Door Slam, garnering rave reviews, making national US television appearances (Jimmy Kimmel Live, Good Morning America), earning extensive triple-A radio airplay, and achieving two Top 5 Billboard Blues charting albums. Since then he has been solo, and he independently released two more studio albums, 2014’s The Outsider and 2016’s Three Miles From Avalon, which also hit the Top 5 on the Billboard Blues chart. He’s earned plum endorsements from D’Addario strings, PRS guitars, Bludotone amps, and Celestion speakers, became the first musician in history to play live directly to the International Space Station from Mission Control in Houston, and held his own sharing the stage with such heavyweight artists as The Who, Jeff Beck, Gov’t Mule, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock, Joe Bonamassa, Sonny Landreth, Peter Frampton, Joe Satriani, and Sammy Hagar, among many others.

 

‘What Happens Next’ by Davy Knowles
1. Light of the Moon
2. Heartbreak Or Nothing
3. Roll Me
4. Get Lucky
5. Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
6. One & the Same
7. Solid Ground
8. River
9. Side Show
10. Hell to Pay
11. Wake Me Up When The Nightmare Is Over
13. If I Ever Meet My Maker

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One Response

  1. I was privileged to see Davy Knowles for the first time in Bethlehem Pennsylvania probably about 3or4 years ago he played at the Levitt pavilion steel stage with the Bethlehem steel stacks behind the band lit up in purple! I read a little bio on him and it said that his album “coming up for air” was coproduced and also played some songs with him is the one & only Peter Frampton! one of my favorite artist of all time!!
    Davy has a way with his guitar leads and his soloing!! and his vocals are just tremendous!! really really good vocal I always appreciate that in a guitar soloist he can play man he can play!!????
    I am bubbling over in my spirit because I found out just on Tuesday the16th I heard he was playing at the Reading blues festival he took the place of somebody had dropped out so then I was looking at more of where he is playing! He is Hmoing to play at the famous Stanhope House, in Stanhope,NJ Thursday night the 18th that place has so much history in it it’s unreal… i’m from New Jersey & used to live a little bit closer than I am here in Central Bethlehem Pennsylvania but one time years ago I looked up Muddy Waters shows they have listed every single show he played and he play at the Stanhope house in 1969 I believe it was July 3 or fourth I forget but one of those dates he was there and that Club!!? has had just tremendous amount of excellent excellent blues and blues rock guitarist are used to be known strictly as a blues club and now new owners have trying to draw in the young people so they also have a lot of the different bands to reach out to a younger audience but they’ve going to have Davy!!?????????
    Lord willing I will be there!

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