Omar & the Howlers,
Boogie Man

Label: Ruf Records
Year: 2004

(3 out of 5)

Omar & the Howlers team up with some beloved Austin musicians for Boogie Man, their first album of all-new material since 2000's The Screamin' Cat. Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham, Papa Mali, and Darden Smith are among those lending a hand to Kent "Omar" Dykes and his rotating assortment of Delta blues-styled but central Texas-based musicians.

The results are mixed. The title track—a tribute to Jon Lee Hooker—gets things off to a rollicking start. The Smith-penned "White Crosses" is lyrically moving and musically beautiful. "All the Love We Can Stand" closes the album with some impressive guitar work by Chris Duarte. But there are some missteps along the way as well. The collaboration with Escovedo, "Right There in the Rain," is poppy and weak. "Bamboozled" and "Stone Cold Blues" are uninspiring blues-for-the-sake-of-blues numbers.

Omar & the Howlers have built a significant following in Europe—and deservedly so. They are a solid blues band that blends elements of modern and traditional blues with some Delta boogie and barrelhouse rock. Boogie Man has enough solid material to help grow their fan base back home, but it's not going to make anyone forget about the original Boogie Man.

Buy: Lone Star Music, Amazon

June 5, 2005