Stone Mob is one of the best up and coming rock bands there is. There music is undeniably fun, catchy, incredibly hard to emulate, and full of innovation and surprises. Lead guitarist, song writer, and band leader Blaine Kaltman is a force to be reckoned with. His press speaks for himself. He has been compared to everyone from Edward Van Halen to Paganini and for a very good reason: his phrasing, speed, dexterity, versatility, and inventiveness on guitar are absolutely incredible.
He is backed by an absolutely topnotch bassist and drummer who perform the songs Kaltman writes with musical perfection. If you want to hear hard rock at it’s most original best, listen to Stone Mob.
In a previous article this magazine discussed Stone Mob’s original singer Doug Masterson. We criticized the band for his subpar live performances and the commonly held belief among our staff he lacked the competence as a front man to launch this incredible band into the popularity it deserves.
Stone Mob band leader Blaine Kaltman strongly reacted to our article, defending his original vocalist and declining to be interviewed saying he would have nothing to do with us. This demonstrates unfailing loyalty, even to undeserving talent. However, in the end, fortunately Masterson has been replaced with a superior singer.
Weather Kaltman decided to unburden himself of Masterson’s chronic ineptitude or Masterson himself decided to leave the band is unclear, although I suspect the former holds true because why would any singer willingly depart one of the hottest up and coming rock bands?
Regardless the benefit goes to the fans. Stone Mob now has Matt Ross as their singer and they have never sounded better. Ross has perfect tone and pitch. He does not stagger lyrics, and he looks great on stage. His charisma is a welcome replacement from Masterson who frankly looked like a washed-up biker and who’s lack of timing, pitch, and inability to recall lyrics drew attention from Stone Mob’s otherwise flawless performances.
Check out their entire short three song performance on the Stone Mob Facebook page. The songs- previously unreleased- are epic. Especially the opener It’s a Love Affair which has one of the catchiest hooks I’ve ever heard. Watching Ross belt out these hilarious lyrics while Kaltman jumps in time with the downbeats is simply entertainment at its best.
We have invited Kaltman to be interviewed by our magazine which prizes critical integrity above all else. We will always critique music with unbiased accuracy. We never pander to fans, artists, or popular opinion. Most of our writers and editors are musicians or sound engineers ourselves and, because of our knowledgeability, refuse to sugar coat anything. Kaltman has declined the interview and despite Stone Mob’s well chosen new direction and excellent new singer, refuses to speak to us. This is fine and we accept it. We may not approve of Kaltman’s decision, especially as an up and comer, to shun an opportunity at press. But we respect his decision, obviously motivated by his yearn to protect his former singer.
Stone Mob is a fantastic band who’s ever increasing following is well deserved. There latest live video on their Facebook page shows them at their absolute best. Their new singer Matt Ross is in control of the crowd and shares the same talent and energy as Blaine Kaltman, drummer Andy Hamburger, and bass player Matt Ross. Together these four heavy hitters create an atmosphere of unbridled energy and fun and put on a performance that clearly blew away the crowd. I applaud Stone Mob’s decision to upgrade to a new level. Now they are worthy of the bigtime, and we are sure they are going to get there.
Watch the entire short set here: https://www.facebook.com/stonemobrising/
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