Roots Music Report

Micke (Björklöf) & Lefty (Leppänen) together with Mr. Chef are one of the most exciting acoustic blues and roots bands on the European blues scene. One of their strongest trademarks is the powerful three-part harmonies as well as strong lead vocals sung by all band members.

After ten years break Micke & Lefty feat. Chef announce a new release, bringing their long-awaited third album to also celebrate their 20-year Anniversary. The forthcoming release is a follow-up to their 2010 critically acclaimed “Up The Wall” record. Trio comprises Micke (vocals, percussion), Lefty Leppänen (vocals, guitars) and Chef (bass).

After several international recording projects (USA, UK, Germany) for the individual band members it was time to record this album at their home base in Finland.

Micke & Lefty feat. Chef want to deliver positive energy through their music. This is an energetic, entertaining and even funny group on stage. “That ́s probably why they call us The Acoustic Power Trio”, grins Bjorklof. “ Anyway, we wanted to try to catch these live vibes and bring them on the album. Hopefully we succeeded”, Micke continues. Let The Fire Lead is versatile collection of blues & roots songs with some gospel, folk and rock influences. Maybe even with a touch of The Beatles. The album contains 12 tracks: 9 originals and 3 interpretations of classic blues songs. “Even though we have not released new music with this trio for a long time that does not mean we ́ve been lazy”, laughs Bjorklof. “We had plans to release this album for a couple of years already. But as it very often happens, things change”, Lefty replies.

“We got an international record deal with Micke Bjorklof & Blue Strip. That kept Lefty and me really busy for several years. As they say, you got to strike while the iron is hot”, Micke adds. Meanwhile during the last four years the trio had been working on new material beside all these other projects. “We had a wake up call came last summer when we realized that almost 10-years had passed since the last album release. We felt this could be was now or never so we booked the studio right away, just to put the pressure on. That usually gets the wheels rolling, and it happened this time too”, says Bjorklof. We are really excited and happy with it!!!