A little over a year after releasing his album Road-Dog’s Teeth, New Orleans and Brooklyn based bluesman Johnny Azari returns with the double LP ‘God Damn Blues (The Newest Testament).’ As heard on the slide guitar-based, dusty single “God Damn Blues” (video streaming below), the Shiraz-born singer/multi-instrumentalist impressively conveys real-life hurt through his devilishly charming voice, effectively creating a portrait of a luckless man just trying to survive. It’s a seemingly classic blues story that Azari tells with obvious charisma and artful songwriting. – Zach Weg