8 BALL AITKEN BAND @ CROSSROADS BAR - DUBBO
Event description
For the first time ever, The 8 Ball Aitken Band are playing Dubbo. The gig is to be held at the newly opened Crossroads Bar. 8 Ball's younger brother Dillion James is playing the support slot.
8 Ball Aitken has toured the world for more than a decade performing his swampy-blues-rock across twenty countries to date. He’s earned a loyal fanbase from his live shows and internet videos, while paying his dues as a singer, songwriter, slide-guitarist, and producer.
8 Ball moved to Nashville, Tennessee, USA in 2012 and worked for nine years with many of the best in the blues business today. He won second place in the 2021 International New Orleans Cigar Box Guitar Festival hosted by blues woman Samantha Fish.
8 Ball is back with a brand-new blues rock album ‘ICE CREAM MAN 2’ that hit #1 in the Australian Blues & Roots Charts in June 2023 and had 4 number #1 AMRAP Chart hits. This new 12-song recording was mostly completed in Nashville right before he re-located back to Australia. It’s a highly anticipated follow up to the first ‘ICE CREAM MAN’ album that also hit #1 on the Australian Blues & Roots Charts in March 2021.
8 Ball Aitken produced ‘ICE CREAM MAN 2’ himself. The cast of musicians include Grammy winning drummer Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy), saxophone legend Buddy Leach (George Thorogood & The Destroyers), Sydney soul singer Taya Chani and 8 Ball’s younger brother Dillion James Aitken on Hammond organ and piano. 8 Ball’s partner Jessy Lynch also sang backup vocals. Jessy & 8 Ball welcomed their new baby boy ‘Sonny Miles Aitken’ into their musical family earlier this year.
‘ICE CREAM MAN 2’ CDs and vinyl records are available now from the ‘SHOP’ page on 8ballaitken.com along with tour dates, news, videos, merch and more.
“8 Ball Aitken demonstrates that the blues are alive and well Down Under with this deep-in-the-pocket collection of modern blues and blues rock that’s built atop a swamp blues structure.” Chicago Blues Guide
“For a guy from Australia, 8 Ball Aitken really has the Delta in his bones… I wouldn’t be surprised to find Mississippi mud on the soles of his shoes.” - Gonzo Okanagan
“A lovely, enjoyable collection, start to finish, with the inevitable few songs that stand out, and invite you to hit the replay.” Blues In Britain – Graham Munn
“A mixture of balladry, wordplay, and cutting edge guitar, Swamp Blues 2 from 8 Ball Aitken deserves to be in everyone’s collection.” American Blues Scene
"Ice Cream Man is a splendid listen from start to finish. I highly recommend it.”
Philly Cheeze’s Rock & Blues Reviews
"I first saw him when he was young, hairy and straight outa Brisbane. Now he’s all growed up and going global. Unstoppable!”
Ross Wilson (Daddy Cool, Eagle Rock), Melbourne, Australia
"8 Ball is not an act any band wants to follow! ....even a 5 piece band will have to do some quick and serious note pounding to get 8-ball's vibe off the stage, it just hangs in the air long after he is gone.....he's a freakin solo red headed infector...!"
Mitch Lind, owner/promoter of the Riverhawk and Stringbreak Music Festivals, Florida, USA
“This is outstanding. The way it should be done. You have a new fan.”
Ray Wylie Hubbard (Snake Farm), Texas, USA