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Alias Jones
From: Henderson, Kentucky
Robbie Toerne: Guitars and Vocals
Cody Brunner: Bass Guitars
Walker Brunner: Drums
Genre: Blues/Rock
Music isn’t what it used to be. It used to be pure; a group of musicians performing together, with nothing but the sound they created together. Nowadays, music can hardly be called ‘pure’. Much of the music out there today is so cold and computerized, so cut-out and artificial that it’s hard to even feel anything. Luckily, there are still groups around like Alias Jones.
Alias Jones are a stripped down tour de force of raw musical energy. Made up of Robbie Toerne and Brothers Cody and Walker Brunner, the trio plays music that draws influence from a variety of sources but always feels distinctively unique. Born and raised in the small town of Henderson, Kentucky, the guys met in high school and began playing together. They spent several years playing as the “Robbie Toerne Band” at local spots like Big Daddy’s, and it wasn’t long before they knew they had something special going.
Watching them work, you simply can’t deny it. These guys can flat out play. Robbie is a dynamic, fluid, emotional guitarist with a soulful style of singing. Cody and Walker are a rhythm section in the classic sense; they display a command of their instruments and the beat they lock into keeps everything moving and grooving in style. Alias Jones play with conviction, feeling, and intensity beyond their years.
Not only do they play well, but they play well together. The three musicians have great chemistry with each other, and one of the most exciting things about this young group is the instrumental interplay and the improvisation. No two performances of the same song will sound quite the same, and that is only part of what makes them so thrilling.
Although influenced by classic blues and rock artists like Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Led Zeppelin, this group of young men is looking forward, not backward. Even when they draw on the material of other artists, they play with a fresh, modern sensibility.
You just don’t see very many bands like Alias Jones anymore; raw, gritty, intense, playing from the heart with a sincere love for the music. They are a live band in the truest sense, and it’s not unusual to see people on their feet and dancing when they are playing. They can have the house rocking and then change, on a dime, to soothing the crowd’s sorrows with the heartfelt blues. They can create original material or reinterpret classics with equal prowess. Above all, it is absolutely clear that the musicians in Alias Jones can, will, and do play their asses off and have a great time doing it.
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