Listening to Jimmy ‘Duck’ Holmes wail, play harmonica, and pick on his guitar, it’s hard to believe this is a new album from a contemporary artist. It Is What It Is could have arrived direct from the 20s, that’s how strongly Holmes evokes the Bentonia country blues tradition of which he is the greatest living exponent. The only concession to modern technology is the electric guitar he plays to menacing effect on Bobby Brown and It Had To Be The Devil, but it’s still an incredibly raw experience. It’s just Holmes and the blues, the production so sparse you can hear the buzz of his fingers on the strings. A hypnotic, visceral album, rich in darkness, malevolence and power.
Jimmy ‘Duck’ Holmes: It Is What It Is (Blue Front Records)
Blues as gloriously undiluted as moonshine whiskey.

You can trust Louder Our experienced team has worked for some of the biggest brands in music. From testing headphones to reviewing albums, our experts aim to create reviews you can trust. Find out more about how we review.
“You see people behaving properly and think: ‘I’d like to be part of the blowing of the whistle – even if it’s only writing a poem or a song or whatever”: Roger Waters changed tone, but not topic, on Is This The Life We Really Want?
"It's no longer about how talented you might be, but how good at social media you are": Rosalie Cunningham on breaking through in a shallow scene
"I want to expand my horizons": Rather than gaze backwards with Rush, Alex Lifeson is looking towards a bright future with Envy Of None