By Stevie Connor.
Launched with concerts in Germany, Estonia and Finland in March and April 2023, "Vol. 12" is the latest album of solo instrumentals from the Estonian slide guitarist Andres Roots (his real name!). It's Roots' first full-length release since 2020's "Tartu Lockdown" and his first proper studio album since 2018's "Breakfast in September" that led Blues Blast Magazine reviewer Steve Jones to call him a "major league slide guitarist" and an "impressive guitar wizard. "
Born in Tallinn in 1976, Andres Roots is an Estonian guitarist whose music has received airplay on five continents and whose award-winning 2016 LP "Roots Music" remains the only blues release ever to top the album charts in the Baltics. Roots' international breakthrough came as the leader and main songwriter of the Bullfrog Brown trio in 2005 and he has been touring steadily ever since, performing everywhere from the King Biscuit Blues Festival in Helena, Arkansas and the Deep Blues Festival in Clarksdale, Mississippi to the Shetland Blues Festival in Lerwick, UK and the European Blues Challenge in Hell, Norway.
The book "100 years of Estonian music" introduces Andres Roots as "the most internationally known pure blues player among Estonian guitarists", his music has been played on the radio on five continents, and he has given concerts in the USA and most of Europe. French magazine Blues Again! writes that the Bullfrog Brown guitarist of his time is like a good Bordeaux wine, which gets better and better over the years, while the Finnish portal Blues-Finland.com notes that Roots alone does the work of several musicians on stage.
The 16-time Augustibluus veteran has played with, among others David "Honeyboy" Edwards (1915-2011), Tuomari Nurmio and Dave Arcari, his work regularly reached the top ten most played albums on British and French radio blues shows, rose to the top of the Estonian album chart with the 2016 LP "Roots Music" and also received a Gold Record.
At concerts, Roots performs acoustic and instrumental guitar music, focusing on the solo album released in March 2023, "Vol. 12", which includes original compositions from delta and desert blues to country and western swing heard in last summer's production "The Rainmaker" by 1Teater.
New versions of Roots' earlier creations, spirituals and improvisations on traditional blues themes will also be performed. The critics of “Vol. 12" mentioned the golden age of Mississippi delta blues, as well as acoustic Led Zeppelin, and compared Roots' instrument handling with Leo Kottke and Ry Cooder.
Website: www.andresroots.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/andres.roots.roundabout
Instagram: www.instagram.com/professor.roots