"HowellDevine plays The Music with the original feel, intent and spirit, and you can tell they love the music while delivering some real blues in their own way. The singing and playing is never strained and they play with easy confidence…they don’t have to prove anything. There’s tasty slide, harp and rhythm with relaxed vocals that all blend together for a wonderfully satisfying experience...it knocks me out to hear a group playing such good quality blues today."
~ Charlie Musselwhite
"What a pleasure to find a young band that really gets the blues...Deep and true to the roots. Really digging this record and so glad they’re on the scene. "
~ Bonnie Raitt
"We love them - they are great!"
~ Elvin Bishop
"HowellDevine's Howl is so in the pocket, it's scary. Contemporary but greasy, it's the kind of CD I can enjoy again and again. The opening track, a cover of Sonny's Boy's "The Key," comes on like a freight train, while their laid back instrumental take on "Sookie Sookie" reminds me (in its own way) of Richard "Groove" Holmes' relentless version of "Misty." I have never regretted listening to this band's CDs and Howl is no exception. The title says it all. "
~ Mick Martin, "Mick Martin's Blues Party," Capital Public Radio/KXJZ, Sacramento
"A HowellDevine live show is like hopping a train in New Orleans and heading north past the Mississippi Hill Country, rolling past Memphis and Kansas City and arriving in the heart of Chicago. Jump on board the HowellDevine Blues Express next time that it pulls into your town."
~ Chuck Wentworth, Executive Director, Rhythm & Roots Festival, Charlestown, RI
"HowellDevine is the real deal. From the moment they took the stage at The Extended Play Sessions, everyone knew they in for something special. Authentic, vintage blues played to perfection with a great sense for historical accuracy and a deep understanding of the genre. I'd have these guys back in a minute. They brought it and the audience soaked it up. It was a monumental night."
~ Bill Hurley, Executive Producer, Alternate Root TV
"Simply put, this trio makes up one of the more powerful, innovative, solid and satisfying engines putting out blues today."
~ No Depression journalist, Deborah Crooks
"The first time I heard these cats play, it sounded like a freight train rolling down Bourbon street!! It's good to know there are musicians out there carrying on and evolving an important American tradition. All aboard the HowellDevine train!!"
~ Ben Jaffe, Preservation Hall Jazz Band
"How refreshing!! A new crop of musicians, who instead of embracing the all too prevalent 'Wow look at me shredding loudly on the guitar' modality of blues performance, have instead chosen a minimalist approach, which strips both the classic blues tunes they interpret, as well as their wonderful original compositions down to the bare essence of what the blues is all about… "blues with a feeling." Played simply and with authenticity that is both old school and refreshingly new, HowellDevine plays great grooves sure to get everybody out on the dance floor in any juke joint in town! I love HowellDevine and always take the opportunity to put on my dancing shoes and go enjoy them when they're playing in my neighborhood."
~ Maria Muldaur
"Did three white guys from The SF Bay Area just make one of the best blues albums of 2014? Why yes, I believe they did."
~ KPFA radio disc jockey, Tim Lynch
"A divine howl for HowellDevine, one of the very best acoustic blues acts in the Bay Area!"
~ Music journalist/critic Andrew Gilbert
"I say the Train Song by HowellDevine is the most brilliant song I've seen performed this year."
~ Steven Suen (Owner of Biscuits & Blues)
"People give me CD's all the time, but this (Delta Grooves) CD is the first one I've listened to from beginning to end in years!"
~ Chris Strachwitz (Arhoolie Records)
"When they play Train, you don't get on their train, you become their train."
~ Devon Strolovitch (KALW - Fog City Blues)
"...[their] rhythm section manages to create a deep-pocket groove on every song - particularly when vocalist Joshua Howell whips out his harmonica."
~ East Bay Express
~ Charlie Musselwhite
"What a pleasure to find a young band that really gets the blues...Deep and true to the roots. Really digging this record and so glad they’re on the scene. "
~ Bonnie Raitt
"We love them - they are great!"
~ Elvin Bishop
"HowellDevine's Howl is so in the pocket, it's scary. Contemporary but greasy, it's the kind of CD I can enjoy again and again. The opening track, a cover of Sonny's Boy's "The Key," comes on like a freight train, while their laid back instrumental take on "Sookie Sookie" reminds me (in its own way) of Richard "Groove" Holmes' relentless version of "Misty." I have never regretted listening to this band's CDs and Howl is no exception. The title says it all. "
~ Mick Martin, "Mick Martin's Blues Party," Capital Public Radio/KXJZ, Sacramento
"A HowellDevine live show is like hopping a train in New Orleans and heading north past the Mississippi Hill Country, rolling past Memphis and Kansas City and arriving in the heart of Chicago. Jump on board the HowellDevine Blues Express next time that it pulls into your town."
~ Chuck Wentworth, Executive Director, Rhythm & Roots Festival, Charlestown, RI
"HowellDevine is the real deal. From the moment they took the stage at The Extended Play Sessions, everyone knew they in for something special. Authentic, vintage blues played to perfection with a great sense for historical accuracy and a deep understanding of the genre. I'd have these guys back in a minute. They brought it and the audience soaked it up. It was a monumental night."
~ Bill Hurley, Executive Producer, Alternate Root TV
"Simply put, this trio makes up one of the more powerful, innovative, solid and satisfying engines putting out blues today."
~ No Depression journalist, Deborah Crooks
"The first time I heard these cats play, it sounded like a freight train rolling down Bourbon street!! It's good to know there are musicians out there carrying on and evolving an important American tradition. All aboard the HowellDevine train!!"
~ Ben Jaffe, Preservation Hall Jazz Band
"How refreshing!! A new crop of musicians, who instead of embracing the all too prevalent 'Wow look at me shredding loudly on the guitar' modality of blues performance, have instead chosen a minimalist approach, which strips both the classic blues tunes they interpret, as well as their wonderful original compositions down to the bare essence of what the blues is all about… "blues with a feeling." Played simply and with authenticity that is both old school and refreshingly new, HowellDevine plays great grooves sure to get everybody out on the dance floor in any juke joint in town! I love HowellDevine and always take the opportunity to put on my dancing shoes and go enjoy them when they're playing in my neighborhood."
~ Maria Muldaur
"Did three white guys from The SF Bay Area just make one of the best blues albums of 2014? Why yes, I believe they did."
~ KPFA radio disc jockey, Tim Lynch
"A divine howl for HowellDevine, one of the very best acoustic blues acts in the Bay Area!"
~ Music journalist/critic Andrew Gilbert
"I say the Train Song by HowellDevine is the most brilliant song I've seen performed this year."
~ Steven Suen (Owner of Biscuits & Blues)
"People give me CD's all the time, but this (Delta Grooves) CD is the first one I've listened to from beginning to end in years!"
~ Chris Strachwitz (Arhoolie Records)
"When they play Train, you don't get on their train, you become their train."
~ Devon Strolovitch (KALW - Fog City Blues)
"...[their] rhythm section manages to create a deep-pocket groove on every song - particularly when vocalist Joshua Howell whips out his harmonica."
~ East Bay Express
