Hudební Benedikt – The Freaky Buds (FR)

The Freaky Buds draw from classic electric blues – from R. L. Burnside to Magic Sama – and blend it with rockier influences from bands like The Black Keys, The Dead Weathers, and Rival Sons. The band deliberately forgoes a bassist, paying homage to the original roots of blues.

The French quartet features Max Genouel (vocals, guitar), Lonj (guitar), Thomas Troussier (harmonica), and Hugo Deviers (drums, vocals).

Critics wrote about their album Hard Days, Fuzzy Nights: "Delta, Hill Country blues, pub rock, or indie rock – a band already one step ahead of the rest on the European blues scene" (Soulbag, 09/2023); "The album overflows with feeling in the vocals, interaction between guitars and harmonica, and a hypnotic groove" (My Head Is a Jukebox, 09/2023); "One foot in blues tradition and the other in garage rock bands" (Paris Move, 07/2023).