Buffalo Nichols

Nichols’ vision for the blues is of a form of music that’s intimately tied to everyday life in 2024. This vision is something that’s reflected not only in the choice of instrumentation, but also in the complexities of the songwriting and the gray areas his lyrics explore. This music that comes straight from the present, a reminder that the same things that drove the first blues singers to pick up a guitar, is still present behind the deep throbs of bass hits today. Nichols’ latest album, The Fatalist, sounds unlike any blues record you’re likely to hear in 2024.

Of course, Nichols’ songwriting has always been firmly rooted in the present. He proved he could succeed on the music industry’s own blues terms on his self-titled 2021 debut, whose songs, Bandcamp Daily said, “seem to flow from some great repository of emotion and insight.”