Band Info

History

Although bassist/arranger Kevin Higgins and frontman Sean Plunkett had collaborated under the name before, the Smokestack Lightning we know today really only came about in 2006, when the pair hooked up with Robert Higgins, a young drummer/percussionist.

Jazz guitarist Scott Kohlman joined the band for a fruitful run of writing and gigging, bringing West-Coast, funk and latin sounds. Late in 2007, Dave Byrne stepped in on guitar, bringing an earthier groove-rock approach.

The band have been getting tighter and groovier ever since, exploring jazz, funk, latin and rock rhythms in original tunes and reinterpretations of blues classics. Previous gigs inlude The Mezz, The Bleu Note, JJ Smyth's, DLIADT, and many more.

Influences

Smokestack Lightning mines the whole history of electric blues for inspiration, even dipping into the acoustic repertoire of Robert Johnson and Sticks McGhee. The sound of the band is heavily informed by the classic Chicago blues of Muddy Waters and Sonny Boy Williamson II, while our improvisational approach could be traced back to the boogies of John Lee Hooker or alternatively the British blues-rock of the sixties and seventies.

Overall, Smokestack Lightning aim to emulate the great white blues bands like Canned Heat, Stevie Ray Vaughan and early Fabulous Thunderbirds, marrying total respect for the blues tradition with contemporary ideas and intensity.