LOW SOCIETY BAND

You'd be forgiven if, in stumbling upon the first notes of a Low Society song, you thought you'd found a forgotten classic. But a few bars in and you know this is not your grandpa's blues. Sturgis Nikides slide guitar starts at the blues but winds its way through the full repertoire of what we sometimes call rock and roll, from its origins in delta blues to its far dark alternative edge. Woven with the powerful voice of his partner in life and crime, Mandy Lemons, his genre-bending guitar style has found its home. The pair has codified their shared love of Texas and Delta Blues, hillbilly music and rock 'n roll into their own subconscious language. Low Society’s songs are a diverse amalgamation of intensely personal original blues with lyrics that invoke Mandy's hard scrabble Texas origins. Big City Rhythm & Blues Magazine says “these hipsters have taken southern country blues and super-charged it to a white-hot intensity”. Sturgis Nikides picked up the guitar at an early age, after seeing the Beatles on the Ed Sullivan show. By his teens he was playing sold out shows at legendary NYC nightspots including CBGB and Max's Kansas City. After working with Velvet Underground chanteuse Nico in the late 70's, he joined forces with VU co-founder John Cale. He made his vinyl debut on Cale's 1979 release Ready for War followed by the 1981 cult classic Honi Soit on A&M Records. After his years recording and touring with Cale ended Sturgis migrated south to Miami Beach where he formed the band Voidville with Diane Ward. He released his debut solo album Man of Steel in 2004, playing venues from New York to the Great Lakes, refining the slide guitar style that he is noted for. Mandy Lemons sings the blues with an astonishing powerhouse voice which mixes original southern fried soul and northern attitude. She hails from one of the blues ‘capitals’ of the world, Houston Texas, home of the late great Lightnin’ Hopkins. Her mother exposed her to Billie Holiday at an early age, which made a lasting impression. You will be astonished to hear so much power coming out of such a small figure, and you can clearly hear the influences of Koko Taylor, Big Maybelle, Etta James, Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, Sharon Jones and Amy Winehouse. Her performances are visually and emotionally dramatic, approaching legendary status. C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz (Nov 11, 2014) says “...Lemons is a tornadic force of nature laying waste to all of the blues-rock produced since the 1960s...This band, following its mistress Lemons' lead, is a feral and untethered spirit that makes its musical statement like the basement door slamming in the dark, off its hinges”. Mandy "escaped" Houston in 2003 and headed to New York City. Five years later fate intervened and a mutual friend introduced her to Sturgis. They immediately began writing and recording and played their first show together in 2009. Among their hundreds (and counting) of shows, notable Low Society appearances include the 30th International Blues Challenge in Jan 2014, Mississippi's Juke Joint Festival (2011/201/2013/2014/2017), the BluesAlive Festival 2012 in Sumperk & Zlin, Czech Republic and Chorzow, Poland, and NYC's Howl Festival for three consecutive years (2009/2010/2011), the Winchester Blues House Festival (July 18, 2015) and the Lucerne Blues Festival in Switzerland (Nov.12, 2015) and multiple dates throughout Belgium & the Netherlands (2015/2016), as well as a weekly residency for 18 months on Beale Street, at the Blues Hall. Sturgis and Mandy left NYC in January 2012, journeying south in search of the essence of the roots of American music. Wandering through the back-roads of Texas and Mississippi, they landed in Memphis Tennessee, the birthplace of rock 'n roll and the cradle of the blues. Throughout their time there they have joined forces with some of the best musicians the Bluff City has to offer - including honorary member, the legendary Dr. Herman Green on the saxophone, and Rick Steff on keys and accordion. This band is a powerhouse, scorching audiences all over the world. Their sophomore album "You Can't Keep A Good Woman Down" on Icehouse Records, and recorded at the legendary American Recording Studio, has had extensive air-play all over the world including SiriusXM, BB King's Bluesville where it is in regular rotation. Their NEW album SANCTIFIED is a trans-Atlantic production with native Belgians Jacky Verstraeten on bass and Bart De Bruecker on drums. The rhythm tracks were recorded at Closed Session Recording Studio in Roeselare, Belgium, by Kristof Maes, and the rest of the recording and tracks were done at American Recording Studio in Memphis, TN, by Will Danger. Low Society - Sanctified will be released in early May 2017. Get ready! Pre-ordering starts the beginning of April 2017. #rootsrockrebellion