LATVIAN BLUES BAND (LV)

LATVIAN BLUES BAND, a band around guitarist and singer Janis Bukovskis, started playing music in the style of their great idols (Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Elmore James, Little Walter, Robert Johnson) in 1997. In 2000 they accompanied Canadian bluesman Johnny V on his tour of Latvia. One concert was recorded - and it must have been very good, because this recording opened doors for them. Subsequently, all the blues musicians who toured the Baltics wanted to be accompanied by LBB, including Phil Guy, Carey Bell, John Primer, Shawn Pittman and even Joe Cocker.

In 2005, at Buddy Guy's invitation, they played at the legendary Chicago Blues Festival and Buddy Guy's club, the Legends. In 2009 they won the Baltic Blues Challenge in Eutin, Germany, following which they traveled to Memphis/Tennessee in 2010 to participate in the International Blues Challenge. In 2011 they participated in the 1st European Blues Challenge in Berlin.

The band plays as if from one mould, the horns are always used at the right moment. Janis has a first-class playing technique and is blessed with a wonderful voice, and Artis Locmelis (saxophone) and Nauris Strezs (trombone) are also an asset to the band, which once started as a quartet.