Danish roots-rocking octet Thorbjørn Risager & The Black Tornado Band has a new single out, entitled ‘Long Time Ago‘, out now through the Provogue/Mascot Label Group with
This track is the second release from their yet to be announced and much-anticipated new album and it offers a fresh, modern take on the blues, channeling the vibes of contemporary giants like The Black Keys and My Baby or a modern JJ Cale take while staying true to the band’s deep blues roots.
‘Long Time Ago’ blends classic blues traditions with modern soundscapes. The single is driven by a pulsating groove and Risager’s soulful vocals, reminiscent of the swampy, raw energy that has become synonymous with The Black Tornado’s sound.
The single can be streamed here and you can check out the lyric video to it here at RAMzine – Shot on the road, it captures the melancholic yet captivating spirit of the blues noir— a perfect visual complement to the track’s mood.
“‘Long Time Ago’ is a song about searching,” said Thorbjørn Risager. “Everybody’s searching for something. Maybe you’re searching for true love, maybe you’re searching for your lost youth, maybe you’re searching for something and you don’t even know what it is.”
Back in June, the band issued ‘Already Gone’ as a single and that was the band’s first new music since their 2022 album, Navigation Blues – It dropped as the band was sweeping their way across Europe on tour.
Talking about the song, Risager said, “’Already Gone’ is a classic Thorbjørn Risager & TBT blues rock track with some pretty solid guitar work from Joachim Svensmark. Fun fact: Joachim’s two solos are first takes, and there was no reason to give it another shot. The production and sound of the song are classic 1970s ZZ Top dry as hell and a tribute to one of the bands we might have been listening to the most over the years. It made a lot of sense to combine it with a cartoon strip lyric video with car chases searching for the girls that are already gone.”
At the Danish Grammys, Navigation Blues saw them pick up the Danish Blues Release of the Year as well as the Best Live Blues Band at the 2023 Danish Music Awards. They appeared live on Danish TV and were nominated for Best International Blues Artist at the 2022 UK Blues Awards and the B.B. King International Artist of the Year Award at the 2024 Canadian Maple Blues Awards, as well as featuring on numerous albums of the year polls.
Over the last 18 months, their ever-present tour bus, The Duke, has put in the hard miles as they’ve toured the continent, playing in 14 different countries as well as in the US and Canada, where they also played aboard a steamboat in Ontario. They appeared at various festivals and sold-out headline shows and were also one of the standout performers on the Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea Mediterranean Cruise.
It’s been twenty years since they released their debut album, Live 2004 and since then, they’ve picked up numerous awards and blazed a trail across the world, captivating crowds with their dynamic stage presence and a sound that fuses soul Chicago blues, boogie and rock ‘n’ roll with a voice where Ray Charles, Van Morrison and Billy Gibbons meet in the middle. They’ve opened for Bonnie Raitt, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, and Risager himself, sharing the stage with legends such as Buddy Guy and Robben Ford. They’ve even picked up a fan in Elwood Blues himself, Dan Aykroyd, who hailed their “Hot rhythm and blues”.
The band – featuring Risager (Vocal, acoustic & electric guitar), Emil Balsgaard (Piano, organ, Wurlitzer, clavinet, Farfisa, Joachim Svensmark (Electric& acoustic guitar, synthesiser, piano, viola, drums, percussion, glockenspiel, mandolin), Kasper Wagner (Alto sax, tenor Sax, baritone sax, flutes, clarinet), Hans Nybo (Tenor sax, bass clarinet), Peter W Kehl (Trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, percussion), Søren Bøjgaard (Bass, Moog bass, baritone guitar, synthesiser, piano, percussion) and Martin Seidelin (Drums, percussion) – continues to hit the road as they wind their way throughout Europe, calling through Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Spain, the UK, and Switzerland.
THORBJØRN RISAGER & THE BLACK TORNADO BAND UK LIVE DATES
12 Oct – Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh
13 Oct – Carlisle Rock and Blues Festival
