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Hopeless Jack & The Handsome Devil

Rank #26 Portland, OR Blues / Rock & Roll / Low Down Dirty

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About

Members: Hopeless Jack - Guitar & Vocals, Smilin Pete - Bangers & Crashers

Sounds Like: The Gories, Junior Kimbrough, The Gun Club, Scott H. Biram, Seasick Steve

Label: None

Manager: None

Bio: *Hopeless Jack & the Handsome Devil** - *A raucous and raw element of rock & roll grounded in the roots of soul and blues. Hopeless Jack (lead/slide-guitar, vocals) and Smilin’ Pete (drums) form the power duo of the Rose City’s strip club filled, liquor sodden nightlife working-class. They draw t... See Full Bio

More Info

Status

: Waiting for the rain to quit so that we can finish filming the video for the new album. Get ready, it is... http://t.co/hcDsrg3S2q

Press

“The band takes old-school blues and refinishes the gritty riffs with a veneer of showmanship. They're simple and they're loud and that's why we love them.”

— Bianna Brey, The Source Weekly

“They were performing on stage and a bunch of gorgeous burlesque dancers kept rotating onto the stage and danced while the band performed. It wasn’t long before my attention was more on the band’s music and not the ladies. ”

— roo78, Pacific Northwest Life

“Anyone doubting that rock 'n' roll can still be dangerous needs only to hear the whisky-haggard tone of Biesel's voice to know it is still as dangerous as a cornered wildcat.”

— Josh Gross, Boise Weekly

“On further reflection, the wildcat in question may actually be Biesel's drummer, Smilin' Pete Thomas, whose whirlwind performances are best viewed from a safe distance.”

— Josh Gross, Boise Weekly

“Like a good Walter Hill movie, they took the raw meat of the macho hoochie-coochie-man archetype, stuck its tounge firmly in its cheek, slapped it on the grill and cranked the heat all the way up.”

— Benjamin Shultz, Here Comes the Dumptruck

“A stirring guitar and drum duo from Portland that marries early punk and North Mississippi blues beautifully.”

— Our Picks, The Source Weekly

“Their sound is thick, something you have to dig into, like the grit at the bottom of a strong pot of coffee or that last puff of an unfiltered cigarette.”

— Brianna Brey, The Source Weekly

“Portland, Ore., blues duo Hopeless Jack and the Handsome Devil sounds like capital T-rouble and performs like a boxer fighting his way out of a corner.”

— Josh Gross, Boise Weekly

“These boys play a raucous, racing blues-rock that harkins back to the days of tending to the still all night. Hopeless Jack croons and wails as Smilin’ Pete lays down a frantic rhythm that drips of Keith Moon.”

— Nick Hilden, SSG Music

“This duo is built for comfort and for speed.”

— Benjamin Shultz, Here Comes the Dumptruck

“These boys play a raw, energetic style of dirty blues that is sure to convince first-time listeners that they are truly carrying the torch that fellow-PDX bluesmen and now-defunct Hillstomp once carried authoritatively through these parts in years past.”

— Bozone

“It only took a handful of songs to get most of the audience on their feet. By the time that HJ & THD played their full-throttle finale, just about everybody was dancing, clapping and whooping. Friggin' glorious.”

— Benjamin Shultz, Here Comes the Dumptruck

“The boys play some kind of high-speed, All-American, howling roots, my-dog-died-but-who-cares-if-I’ve-got-whiskey rock and roll. They bang it out with all of the frenzy of the Stooges combined with a shock-and-awe strut gleaned from the early-era bluesmen..., [and] the sexed-up chaos of their stage show is a thing not to be missed.”

— Nick Hilden, SSG Music

“Call these guys the ever-touring duo. Hopeless Jack and the Handsome Devil spent all summer on the road, zig-zagging across the country with their whiskey-infused, howlin’ at the moon blues. When the tour was finished they only spent two weeks recuperating in Portland before taking off again. Talk about being “addicted to the white line”. Keep your eyes open, they could arrive in your town any minute now.”

— Nick Hilden, SSG Music

“Hopeless Jack’s performances lend a feeling that at any moment the duo could disappear in a whirlwind of flames, laughing like the Lucifer.”

— Brianna Brey, The Source Weekly

“These guys combined the brute force of Led Zeppelin with the heedless, careening velocity of Hound Dog Taylor (the blues' answer to the Ramones).”

— Benjamin Shultz, Here Comes the Dumptruck

“Hopeless Jack's soulful, tough-as-nails baritone growl would have given Mike Ness larynx envy, and he matched it with his loud, dirty, heavy slide guitar (which he played so hard that, as he said when he stopped to retune it, he "knocked it down six keys").”

— Benjamin Shultz, Here Comes the Dumptruck

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Recent Blogs

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Oct 19, 2010
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Fri
May 31

Ted's @ Berbati's Pan
Portland, OR, US | 8:00pm
Ted's @ Berbati's Pan
Portland, OR, US
Fri May 31 8:00pm
- Show Details
- Tickets
Details

CD RELEASE PARTY - DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME NO MONEY HERE
Sat
Jun 1

The Horned Hand
Bend, OR, US | 8:00pm
The Horned Hand
Bend, OR, US
Sat Jun 01 8:00pm
- Show Details
- Tickets
Details

RECORD RELEASE PARTY - DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME NO MONEY HERE
Sun
Jun 2

St. James Infirmary
Reno, NV, US | 8:00pm
St. James Infirmary
Reno, NV, US
Sun Jun 02 8:00pm
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- Tickets
Mon
Jun 3

The Press Club
Sacramento, CA, US | 8:00pm
The Press Club
Sacramento, CA, US
Mon Jun 03 8:00pm
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Tue
Jun 4

The Knockout
San Francisco, CA, US | 8:00pm
The Knockout
San Francisco, CA, US
Tue Jun 04 8:00pm
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Comments

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Grapefruit Clinton (...
Very soulful, dig it.
Hurricane Ruth
Great tunes, diggin' the groove!!
Korie Anne
Hey totally love your music. I am a fan for sure and i would be so honored if you would come to my page and do the same for me. I hope you and your family have a wonderful...
thelucyhammondband
Hey Gents! Diggin' your rockin' groove!Gonna catch a PDX show soon!Missed 'ya last night,'cause I couldn't find the joint! Keep on kickin' ass & takin' names! Let's do a sh...
Ben Aaron
Great music, Hopeless Jack. Good luck on your upcoming shows. From another songster, -Ben Aaron