Hunter & The Dirty Jacks

Hunter & The Dirty Jacks
“Leave Tomorrow”
From the album Chase the Moonlight
Self-Released

Hunter & The Dirty Jacks are “California Crafted Rock & Roll” featuring frontman Hunter Ackerman, guitar players Carmelo Bonaventura and Jon Siembieda, bassist Aaron Barnes and drummer Brian Lara. The album Chase the Moonlight features seven new songs that span rock-and-roll, blues, country, folk and psychedelic Americana. - Relix Magazine

Hunter & The Dirty Jacks
“Roman Highway”
From the album Chase the Moonlight
Self-released
Hunter & The Dirty Jacks are California-crafted rock-and-roll, featuring frontman Hunter Ackerman, guitar players Carmelo Bonaventura and Jon Siembieda, bassist Aaron Barnes and drummer Brian Lara. The new album, Chase the Moonlight, features seven new songs that span rock-and-roll, blues, country, folk and psychedelic Americana. - Relix Magazine

Hunter & the Dirty Jacks
“Salt Whiskey”
From the album Single Barrel

Hunter & The Dirty Jacks are California-crafted rock-and-roll featuring frontman Hunter Ackerman, guitar players Carmelo Bonaventura and Jon Siembieda, bassist Aaron Barnes and drummer Brian Lara. Signed to Spectra Music Group, the album Single Barrel is on 400+ radio stations while the band performs 120 shows per year. - Relix Magazine

Hunter and The Dirty Jacks are a California based rock band, and as they describe themselves as “California-Crafted Rock & Roll - like smokey whiskey with phosphorescent ice cubes in a blues-tinted glass”. The have recently released their newest single, “Salt Whiskey” off their album, Single Barrel”, via the world’s leading independent record label, “Spectra Music Group”.

Band members include, frontman Hunter Ackerman, guitarist Jon Siembieda, guitarist Carmelo Bonaventura, bassist, Aaron Barnes, drummer, Brian Lara, and Moana Avvenenti, vocalist. Their music is currently played on over 400 radio stations, and they have licensing deals with, MTV, E!Network, and Discovery Network.

I spoke with guitarist and co- founder of the band, Jon, about their music, their inspirations, and their future plans.

Why don’t you introduce your band?

The band is called Hunter and the Dirty Jacks, we are based in Southern California. We’ve been on Spectra Music Group for a year and a half, and we have two albums right now. We play about 120 shows a year. We play mostly in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, but we are going to stretch that to Europe and the rest of the United States in 2018. It’s a Rock ‘n’ roll band and we are kind of a melting pot of different styles.

Who writes the songs?

It’s a group effort. Sometimes a guy will come in with most of the song and then will finish it. Sometimes we all sit around and that happens. Sometimes it’s a couple of guys together, but it is a group effort. Hunter, the lead singer likes to write the lyrics, he writes a lot of lyrics, but there are some songs where others have written the lyrics too.

I love your music, “Salt Whiskey”, it’s a little sexy. How did that song come about?

That was a song that somewhat pre-dated the band. Hunter had basically written it on one guitar, the lyrics a couple of years before the band started. So when the band started with some song ideas, a couple of songs written previously, he brought that in. We added like a full band arrangement around it. He wrote it in New Orleans, actually, and obviously it’s kind of bluesy,

but it’s also kind of like a ballad, like a minor blues. So it’s a cool song. It’s always a highlight of the shows.

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I bet, it’s a really good song. What is it that you enjoy most about playing live?

I enjoy that every night is different, and we really try to make it that way. I mean there’s a couple of ways you can go with a live band. Some bands big and small will pretty much play the same show every night no matter where they are, but we don’t do that. We shake it up, in fact we don’t even have set lists. Rarely do we lay out a set list. We have kind of a plan in our heads, but we will literally play the show and pick the songs according to the crowd reacting to us. So we really try to make each show a unique experience. Sometimes that means that you play all your cards perfectly. When you do play your cards perfectly you get that kind of magic going where it is if you were using a set list every night it’s hard to predict what the crowds going to be 2/3 in the way in to the show.

Yes, that really true. That’s a cool idea. Who were your musical influences growing up?

I’m a huge Rolling Stones fan. I love the Black Crowes, all the classic rock, blues, Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead, more of Grateful Dead as an adult. But, I always liked them. Led Zeppelin, all blues, I love the blues. Everybody in the band is generally similar, but Carmelo is a little more of a Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix kinda guy. Aaron is a huge Grateful Dead fan. Brian really loves The Band. Hunter likes all the similar bands that we talked about, he also really loves The Doors. It all comes from a similar place.

All great bands. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Playing. Making records. Writing music, and hopefully we will see the music industry different than it was 10 years ago, which was different than it was 10 years ago, and 10 years before that. I think that there is a market for bands in an indie sense. Touring a lot, playing live shows. It’s all about fans. If you have fans, you can play in all these places and make money, and sustain yourself, and you can make records and you can sell them. If you have a lot of fans, they’ll buy them, and you can make money off of that. It’s about accumulating a fanbase.

What would you like to say to those fans?

That we appreciate the support. There’s a lot of people that saw us in the beginning, and they still see us now. They travel to see us, they are traveling long-distances to see us play. They’ll drive five hours or six hours, I’ve seen 12 hours, people driving to see us. That is humbling and we do appreciate it. We travel a lot, we’re busy, we’re trying to write, and continue with new material, and keep pushing the ball forward. If everyone continues to support us as they have we will be able to do more. We really do appreciate all of the music fans and people that have become even friends.

For more info: Website: hunterandthedirtyjacks.com

Facebook: facebook.com/hunterandthedirtyjacks

Instagram Instagram.com/hunterandthedirtyjacks

Twitter: Twitter.com/DirtyJacksLive - The Huffington Post

Let’s be honest for just a second shall we. I get a lot of albums sent my way for review, and I mean a lot. Most of them don’t do anything for me. They don’t always get happily placed in the CD player, but the ones that do usually get a three song stay of execution and generally if they last past that they get my full unadulterated attention. Sometimes I’m hooked from the first track, and that’s precisely what happened when I put the latest release by Los Angeles based band Hunter and the Dirty Jacks on. The CD bursts to life with “Jubilee” and its fantastic rocked out sound that follows through with a wonderful sequence of songs, 3 of them to be exact. It twists and turns the way great albums should with a little bit of rock, a little bit of high octane driven rock-soul and a lot of harmonic goodness. Hunter and The Dirty Jacks comprise a virtual all-star cast of Los Angeles and Orange County-area musicians that have been playing locally and regionally for over ten years apiece. Fronted by lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Hunter Ackerman, and anchored by Jon Siembieda and Carmelo Bonaventura on guitar, Aaron Barnes on bass, and Brian Lara on drums, the Dirty Jacks put forth an extremely high energy, emotionally compelling performance coupled with a rare combination of soulful originals and tasty covers.

REVERBNATION: http://www.reverbnation.com/hunterthedirtyjacks

I also really like the song line up – the way each song masterfully transitions through to the next creating much in the way of drama. So many bands and record labels get this basic skill so wrong. They fail to listen to the songs at their disposal and seemingly throw the album together without giving it any real thought. I’ve known people who work formulas making sure that their best songs start and finish the album with the remaining tracks squeezed between in a slapdash fashion. That’s not the case with Hunter and the Dirty Jacks. In fact each track could probably survive on its own merits, but the album just flows so well. Front man Ackerman and company could easily be heralded as classic sounding rock but there is so much more to them. I hear Leon Russell, original musical works by Charles Manson, Bobby Charles, John Cleary, John Hyatt, Lowell George. Some pieces stand out like the more appealing to a mass audience “Jubilee” but there’s a deeper and sharper edge to songs like “Smoking Gun.” Salt Whiskey” is my favorite track on the EP. The strategic interweaving of systemic melody and impressive vocal performances from Ackerman is a delight, but the solid rhythmical foundation of this band is essential to their artistic and commercial potential. The sound is that of the golden era of popular music in the sixties and the seventies when musicianship mattered! But the beauty of this record is the use of all mod-cons forcing The Dirty Jacks’ relevance into the modern world. These 6 should achieve good support from radio and appear to be critical darlings of California. But I am left bemused how Hunter and the Dirty Jacks are not yet a household name. It’s not a case of all the elements being present but the final product being missing as the songs, the musicianship, the production, and the performance all knit together beautifully-even brilliantly. Maybe I’m lucky enough to be in on the ground floor? Maybe things are just about to kick on for them.

Whatever it is make sure you get hold of this latest ‘short but sweet” self-titled EP by Hunter and the Dirty Jacks right away via the below link – it’s a must have and in a class all by itself.

Rating – 8.5/10 CD Baby: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/hunterthedirtyjacks

Michelle Parks edited by Michael Rand

Send review comments to – therandbrand@gmail.com - Skope Magazine

BY JOSHUA TEHEE
jtehee@fresnobee.com
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Hunter and the Dirty Jacks is a melting pot of a group, with a sound that runs from bluesy jam-band rock and roll to back-porch country twang, depending on the crowd and the night.

“You’ve got to see a few shows to get a feel for what we do,” says guitarist Jon Siembieda, on the phone in advance of the band’s tour stop, Thursday, September 22 at Fulton 55.

The southern Californian band started its career with a Tuesday night residency at Harvelle’s in Santa Monica. It was a year and a half of playing backup for blues players stopping through the area, Siembieda says.

“We cut out teeth playing with some of the greatest blues guys.”

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So, the Dirty Jacks play at least some blues at every show.

They’ve also been known to play some stripped down country-ish tunes – think standup bass and resonator guitars. The band’s latest album, “Mixed Company and the Midnight Hokum” is that kind of all-acoustic performance, recorded live without overdubs in front of 40 or so Hunter and the Dirty Jacks fans. It’s studio debut on the other hand, is a full-on electric rock record.

“Single Barrel,” was picked up by Spectra Music Group (home to Fresno’s own Russian Money) earlier this year and already the band has licensing deals with NASCAR and a slew of reality TV programming, including “Love Games: Bad Girls Need Love Too.”

Of course, the band looks to set its vibe for the night, regardless of what tunes are on the list, and long before the first note have even been played, Siembieda says. Partly, that’s a matter of band aesthetic, in particular that of front man Hunter Ackerman, who comes across like a rock-and-roll cowboy pirate with a leather holster for a pair of drum mallets and drinking from an animal horn.

“Hunter embraces being the front man with a little flash,” Siembieda says.

“He prides himself on it being a show,” he says.


HUNTER AND THE DIRTY JACKS
W/the AC/DC tribute Fuse Box

8 p.m. Thursday, September 22
Fulton 55, 875 Divisadero St.
$10
559-412-7400, www.fulton55.com

Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/entertainment/ent-columns-blogs/fresno-beehive/article102718137.html#storylink=cpy - Fresno Bee

Single Barrel is the debut album of Californian band Hunter & The Dirty Jacks. The band members include Hunter Ackerman (lead vocals/various instruments), Moana Avvenenti (vocals), Aaron Barnes (bass), Carmelo Bonaventura and Jon Siembieda (guitar), and Brian Lara (drums). Single Barrel is a high quality, polished album impressively performed by a group of skilled musicians.

Single Barrel opens with the gritty tune “Rock & Roll Soul,” which has a kicker chorus that can get trapped in the mind for potentially the entirety of the day. The refrain is repeated just enough times to etch it the head without becoming redundant—a very successful and cleverly composed piece. A few tracks further into the album, “Salt Whiskey” showcases a smoldering, soulful performance both instrumentally and vocally. The song has a rich, smoky quality to it which almost gives one a sense of indulgence when listened to. “Kennel Howl” uses creative lyricism to tell an interesting story, which makes it intriguing to hear from beginning to end; the accompaniment suits the verses perfectly, to boot.

These performers have really proven themselves with this album; it’s a bold and energetic yet sharp and clean-cut collection of songs. Solid lyrics and catchy melodies delivered by gifted artists make Single Barrel a triple threat. It will be very interesting to see what they come up with next.

The Review: 8.5/10

Can’t Miss Tracks

- Rock & Roll Soul
- Prometheus
- Salt Whiskey
- Kennel Howl

The Big Hit

- Rock & Roll Soul - Blues Rock Review

Tuesdays at Harvelle’s Santa Monica are unlike any Tuesday at any given blues club. The residency belongs to Hunter & The Dirty Jacks, a high energy, multi-dimensional bluesy, rootsy rock and roll band, who has transformed the way music gives back to the community.

Since January, the live music venue and the band have been hosting a weekly food drive, which in turn has fed thousands of people in need.

The concept for the weekly “Service Your Soul” night is simple: the $5 cover charge is donated to local non-profits Feed Your Soul and Magic Music Foundation. In lieu of the cover charge, two cans of food can are accepted.

The residency profits have paid for more than 2,500 meals that include barbeque chicken, mashed potatoes, baked goods, and salads, a caliber of food atypical of most shelters.

Band members themselves serve the meals, before a live acoustic set.

Band co-founder and drummer Jon Siembieda said Harvelle’s owner Cevin Clark approached the band about starting a residency after they had a successful show at the venue in November 2012.

“(Cevin) said ‘I really like you guys, I think you have something special.’ And after he offered the residency, we kept thinking, what are we going to do,” Siembieda said. “People only get motivated about feeding those is need during Thanksgiving or Christmas. Other than that, well it’s like, but what about March? What about every other month of the year? Hunger is a problem everyday.”

Santa Monica is known for having one of the highest homeless rates in the country.

According to the City of Santa Monica’s 2013 Homeless Count held Jan. 30, the count showed an increase in the total sheltered and unsheltered homeless population of one percent from 2012.

Siembieda said countywide, one of out five people in Los Angeles County lived in poverty.

He said the Los Angeles City Council is currently contemplating legislation that will make it illegal to give food to the homeless in public.

“You can’t count on the government to take care of the people that need help,” Siembieda said. “We have to do it ourselves.”

Through The Magic Music Foundation, music students of all ages and skill levels have received dozens of donated instruments as well as musical instruction from professional artists.

Using their music as a way to help the downtrodden aligns Hunter & The Dirty Jacks with the history of the blues.

“The idea is that we all feel blues, the soul of American music,” Siembieda said. “It once had meaning. These songs used to be about community and bringing people together. We want to play it for the people who need it. It’s doing good for no other reason than it’s the right thing to do.”

Clark said he and the band have enlisted the help of a major law firm to help them turn the club into a non-profit.

“We have prestigious law firm that took us on pro-bono,” Clark said. “They are going to do the formation of the non-profit. We are not sure if we can do it, but we have the best team doing the research and looking into it. If we can do it non-profit directly, we are looking into different avenues. We are not going to give up on creating a revolutionary idea that other companies can model.”

The Tuesday night two-fold serving has attracted praise from national and international recording artists alike who share their fan base to create awareness.

“A lot of good has come out of it, but a lot more could be done,” Siembieda said.

To help Harvelle’s and Hunter & The Dirty Jacks nourish those in need, visit “Service Your Soul” on Tuesdays at Harvelle’s at 1432 Fourth Street, Santa Monica. - Santa Monica Mirror

Hunter and The Dirty Jacks comprise a virtual all-star cast of Los Angeles and Orange County-area musicians that have been playing locally and regionally for over ten years apiece. Fronted by lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Hunter Ackerman, and anchored by Jon Siembieda and Carmelo Bonaventura on guitar, Aaron Barnes on bass, Brian Lara on drums, and Moana Avvenenti on background vocals, the Dirty Jacks put forth an extremely high energy, emotionally compelling performance coupled with a rare combination of soulful originals and tasty covers. Their latest 3 song self-titled EP was released in 2014. Band consist of Hunter Ackerman (Vocals), Aaron Barnes (Bass), Jon Siembieda (Guitar) and Carmelo Bonaventura (Guitar) and Brian Lara (Drums).

The EP lifts off the ground nicely with Track 1, “Jubilee” a rock steady intro piece that serves up driving rock rhythm meshed against impassioned vocal feel from Ackerman featuring well placed Harmonica set against a grand slam chorus and melody. Track 2, “Smoking Gun” shifts gears a bit with a steady flowing rhythm, rocked out guitar painted against impressive musical flow making for an impressive follow-up statement. Track 3, “Salt Whiskey” serves up a smooth as silk song dishing out intoxicating an amazing Psychedelic Rock groove with an amazing feel, some well-placed vocal harmonies that flows and ebbs its way through to motional fruition. The CD makes a strong first impression, dashing out 3 very solid songs in a row. The musicianship involved is above the bar. I would classify this music as classic Psychedelic Rock, Blues, with brief touches of Americana and straight up Rock n’ Roll to Jam Band. Hunter & The Dirty Jacks remind me of Counting Crows, Bon Jovi, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Keith Urban and even Kenny Loggins. Along the way you will notice lush instrumentation with amazing R&B solo guitar, Acoustic and Rhythm Guitar, sporadic Harmonica, lush harmonies all built upon a ‘thick as a brick’ rhythm section. What I like the most about Ackerman and the gang is how well they seem to groove together, testament to hundreds of hours of writing and rehearsal time no doubt. This is a very tight band! Kudos goes out to the amazing R&B solo guitar licks from Jon Siembieda and amazing “deep in the pocket” timekeeping from Lara. Now turning our attention over to Ackerman. As for his vocal abilities - he’s a great advent for a band like this. His voice goes down smooth and fills the space peacefully and unobtrusively with a timbre that is amazing. At times he reminds me of Jim Morrison (The Doors) behind the microphone. I might add he takes some impressive vocal risks here and there many of us take for granted indicating to me a strong and very confident vocal ability. He commands an effective baritone, falsetto and vibrato. All songs are well crafted and consistent across the board - world class songwriting. All production aspects check out. Within the sonic spectrum I enjoyed the solid low end punch and the crystal clear high end clarity. This latest effort from Hunter and The Dirty Jacks delivers 3 solid tracks all providing musical enjoyment upholding the highest Blues/Rock standard. The music of Hunter and The Dirty Jacks has everything you would expect from a world class musical production – I only wish there were more songs to digest. I did listen to some of the other material available on their REVERBNATION page linked above and I encourage you to do the same. There' are some killer cover tunes on there from Lynyrd Skynyrd and Gregg Allman.

It’s hard to find any serious weaknesses with this release. I typically deduct 1 star for EP releases. The Full Length album is a more complete snapshot to judge an artist by at any give point in time. If this is an EP release (I'm assuming it is) it needs perhaps 2-3 sore songs on it to make it a fully loaded EP release. To go with the Jan Band format I would encourage more soloing overall from as many instruments as possible (Organ, Piano, Slide Guitar).

From start to finish, this latest self-titled 3 song EP from Hunter & The Dirty Jacks is an impressive collection of music. The songwriting is gold standard – full of consistent musical experiences, each one possessing a unique personality, flair, and signature groove. Note for note, song for song, there isn’t really a weak piece in this entire catalog. The writing and playing abilities of these guys is on the money. The melodies and harmonies are well crafted, and the lyrical content is packed to the hilt with good old-fashioned conventional Americana-Blues-Rock wisdom. At the end of the day these guys bring the mojo and quite a lot of Soul. Bring out the full length CD already. - Indie Music Digest

Single Barrel by Hunter and the Dirty Jacks sounds like it belongs on Sunset Boulevard under the sun. This group hailing from Los Angeles sounds pristine together, which may be why they took the “House band” reins from Vintage Trouble at Harvelle’s blues club. They have a tone that precedes millennium rock, but have a sound that transcends traditional Roots and Blues, creating a unique sound their own.

The thumping bass line in “Rock and Roll Soul” is just like a heartbeat waiting to burst. Layered underneath the great, growling vocals of Hunter Ackerman, it provides as the essence of this song. The Orange County-area musicians definitely have their styles planted in Roots and Blues. The tangy guitar playing just behind Ackerman’s voice in “Salt Whiskey” is tasteful and blended nicely together.

“Jubilee” highlights the harmonica as a great leading instrument, and “Doctor Dingo” has a vibe that sounds like a Black Crows rock classic. The song sounds like it comes from the 90s era of rock, and is added to a mixture of roots and blues guitar.

The solo triumphs in the stratosphere in “Break Me Down” and “Lorraine” highlights Ackerman’s vocal range, his low register perfect for the low tone the song creates.

“Kennel Howl” is a different song, a good song to end the album with. It sounds like there is a hint of reverb underlying a 12-string guitar, great for playing this darker western style blues song, and a great addition to the album. The more you hear the howling vocals of Hunter Ackerman, you will fall into his trance. The perfectly assembled band with the perfectly assembled album is a must have. - American Blues Scene