BLACKTOP MOJO
Growing up in small town East Texas taught the boys from Blacktop Mojo that a little leap of faith and a lot of hard work will get you pretty far in life.
Formed in late 2012 by vocalist Matt James and drummer Nathan Gillis, Blacktop Mojo’s fiery blend of heavy post-grunge grooves, classic rock guitar riffs, and Southern Metal shredding falls somewhere between Soundgarden and Lynyrd Skynyrd. After their debut album “I Am” in 2014 and a few years cutting their teeth in dive bars, dancehalls, and honky tonks, the band decided to go all in. In 2017 they teamed up with famed Muscle Shoals Sound producer Jimmy Johnson (The Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Bob Seger) and his long time engineer Steve Melton for their sophomore outing entitled, “Burn The Ships” at Sound Emporium in Nashville. During the recording of the record, the guys took the leap and quit their day jobs, moving into a small house together in Palestine, Texas where they all still live today. The house created an unbreakable fellowship between the band and a culture of constant creativity.
Released via their label Cuhmon Records, “Burn The ships” yielded two top 40 Billboard singles on the Mainstream Active Rock charts including “Where The Wind Blows” (#27) and a cover of the Aerosmith classic, “Dream On” (#31). The album cycle saw a heavy bout of touring where the band shared the stage with a wide range of heavy hitters including Bon Jovi, Candlebox, and Puddle of Mudd, a guest appearance on "Sammy Hagar's Rock and Roll Road Trip, as well as festival appearances at major rock festivals around the US.
After concluding touring early that year, the guys returned home in October of 2018 where they locked themselves in the band house for six months to write and record demos for their third studio record “Under The Sun”. Recorded in 2019 at Rosewood Studios in Tyler, TX with long time friend and producer Philip Mosley, The record is a hodgepodge of throwback sludgy rock and metal mixed with sensual and at times even, carnal blues.
"Under The Sun" debuted at #19 on the Billboard Hard Rock albums Chart and its lead off single, "Can't Sleep", gave the band another Billboard Mainstream Rock hit rising to #27. The band continues relentlessly touring to support their latest studio ventures, and continuously strives to be one of the hardest working, Independent bands in Rock and Roll today.