Texas Rock Band BLACKTOP MOJO has released an animated, “Jealousy/Make Believe,” a two track compilation and first installment for the 3 song concept within their 2021 released, self-titled album. Created by front-man MATT JAMES and bassist CATT MURTIS on the porch of the band’s house in Palestine, TX, with an acoustic guitar, “Jealousy/Make Believe” blossomed in Nashville with the help of producer PHILIP MOSLEY. The animated video will be released in two parts, with part two concluding the story with “Darlin I Won’t Tell,’ which will be released later.
“From our fourth record, ‘Jealousy/Make Believe’ and ‘Darlin I Won’t Tell’ are sort of a concept album within the album. The three songs flow together as a singular narrative and we wanted to create a striking visual to convey the story. We decided to do something cool that we’ve never done before and make a 3 song animated video to tell this story of heartbreak, murder, and deception. ” – BLACKTOP MOJO
Formed in late 2012 by vocalist Matt James and drummer Nathan Gillis in the small East Texas town of Palestine, Blacktop Mojo’s fiery blend of sludgy grooves, classic rock guitar riffs, and southern metal shredding falls somewhere between Soundgarden and Lynyrd Skynyrd to form a sound deemed by some as “Texas Grunge”. The music draws on a multitude of genres and styles to form a hodgepodge of dirty, heavy rock and roll mixed with sensual and at times even, carnal blues.
After their debut album I Am” in 2014, The band spent a few years cutting their teeth in dive bars, dancehalls, and honky tonks around Texas. In 2017, during the recording of their sophomore record Burn The Ships the guys quit their day jobs, moving into a small house together in Palestine, TX. 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 Billboard Top 40 singles on the Mainstream Active Rock charts including “Where The Wind Blows” (#27) and a cover of the Aerosmith classic, “Dream On” (#31). After the album cycle and touring for Burn The Ships concluded, the guys returned home in 2018, where they locked themselves in the band house for six months to write their third record, Under The Sun. The record yielded them another top 40 single in “Can’t Sleep” (#27) and the band continued touring in the US through the beginning of 2020.
Locked down with the rest of the world and unable to continue touring, the guys began work on their fourth, self-titled album, which released August 13th, 2021 to rave reviews, reaching #3 on the iTunes Rock Chart and #17 on the all-genre Albums Chart.
-Official bio
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