Pat the White

Out of the wilds of Carleton, in the Gaspesie region of Québec, comes a blazing new talent who fuses blues to rock in that progressive fashion that has long been a part of French tradition. Pat the White (a decidedly Anglo translation of main man Patrick LeBlanc’s name) takes care of all vocals and guitars and wields his weapon like a young Frank Zappa: aggressively and with pinpoint accuracy. Fellow players include Christian LeBlanc on B3, Big Ben on electric bass and Nikolas Lalonde on drums. Cameos on this first release include the underexposed Nanette Workman (on one of the disc’s best track, "Feels Like Mississippi”), Kim Richardson (on the sensational "Soul of a Dead Man”). Stylistically, these guys are all over the map — feeling their way towards a style they can call their own. But the good news is they cover a lot of territory (including covers of Pete Anderson, Tom Waits and Muddy Waters) and can choose their path with confidence. Live, they positively smoke — recently blowing the dust off Healey’s rafters during the Blues Summit in a blinding exhibition of raw power and seasoned chemistry. Guest Guy Belanger’s harmonica reinvents "Cross-eyed Cat” while Jody Golick’s guest sax on the blistering instrumental "Risk” clearly demonstrates that these young mavericks can own whatever turf they claim as theirs if they so choose.