DAVE HOLE – PRESS QUOTES

(Chronologically ordered )

“Magnificent, staggering, almost beyond belief.  Utterly Blues approved.”
--“GUITAR PLAYER” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“An astounding guitarist.  Evokes favourable comparisons to Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan.”
--“GUITAR PLAYER” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“It’s not pretentious or flashy.  It is just Blues guitar played with mind-numbing virtuosity.”
--“SYDNEY MORNING HERALD”, SYDNEY. 

 

“Truly explosive – solid Blues-Rock played with a fire and intensity last heard in vintage Johnny Winter.”

--“CHICAGO TRIBUNE”, U.S.A. 

 

“The most accomplished slide guitarist to come around in a long while. 
Plays slide guitar like he learned it at an American juke joint.”
–“SPIN” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“Hole’s playing is truly explosive.  His emotionally raw and raucous slide work recalls vintage Johnny Winter.
–“GUITAR WORLD”, U.S.A.  

Dished out with raw, first-take intensity, ’Short Fuse Blues’ is a convincing exhibition of the real thing.”
–“GUITAR FOR THE PRACTICING MUSICIAN”,  U.S.A.  

 

“There’s no more explosive Blues guitar player in the world.”
--“ESQUIRE”, U.S.A.  

 

“Australian Dave Hole is a guitar-hero-in-waiting of the first magnitude, it’s just a matter of exposure. 

This guy’s a monster.”
–“JAZZ AND BLUES”, U.S.A.  

 

“Slide guitar fanatics will have their brains blown out by the second astonishing album by this Australian fret-melter. 
......just take in the eight brilliantly sustained minutes of ‘Up All Night Thinking’ and prepare to hear your jaw hitting the floor.”
–“BILLBOARD” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“....the man and his guitar were all-encompassing.  This was exciting, not just for the Australian Blues-rocker but for the entire audience at ‘Legends’.  Hole burned down Buddy Guy’s place Friday for two amazing sets.
His lightening delivery and screaming slide, which sounded almost like a falsetto vocal at times, were works of art.”
–“CHICAGO SUN-TIMES”, U.S.A.  

 

“Years from now, Blues aficionados may still be talking about the time in November, 1993 when slide guitarist Dave Hole first came to town.  An extraordinary musician and nascent star,  Hole is often compared to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, but he plays with depth of feeling that owes more to early bottleneck men like Blind Willie Johnson.”
–“NEW YORK” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

"He’s an amazing Australian slide guitar player. When I listen to him it sounds like he’s doing a hybrid picking and sliding thing, but I saw some footage of him and he’s sliding all the notes. He plays so fast, and his phrasing, intonation and tone are perfect."
KIRK HAMMETT of METALLICA in "GUITAR WORLD", USA

 

“One of the world’s most powerful players.”

–“GUITAR WORLD”, U.S.A.  

 

“Whether he’s sliding, picking, or acoustic bottlenecking, Dave scorches the strings with utter abandon, pushing the envelope yet another notch further in this idiom.”
–“GUITAR PLAYER”, U.S.A.  

 

“If  you have any taste for raucous slide guitar, don’t let ‘Working Overtime’ disappear from your record store.
Hole could do for slide what his countrymen AC/DC did for metal.”
–“PLAYBOY”, U.S.A.  

 

“Australian Dave Hole has the chops and smarts to transcend decades’ worth of Elmore James cliches. 
....Hole’s work displays bruising power and bewildering invention.  The band cooks at a boil, and Hole’s vocals ain’t too shabby, but ultimately it’s the playing here that will leave you slack-jawed with wonder.”
–“MUSICIAN”, U.S.A.  

 

‘And now for something truly phenomenal, here’s Dave Hole, an Australian player who hangs his slide hand over the neck and then proceeds to whip out some of the wildest Blues bottleneckin’ you’ve ever heard.
A six-string revelation.”
– “GUITAR FOR THE PRACTICING MUSICIAN’”, U.S.A.  

 

 “.......and Dave Hole – his slide playing kills me.”

- KIRK HAMMETT (METALLICA)

 

READERS POLL – “BEST SLIDE GUITARIST” category – JOINT 3rd. PLACE.
–“GUITAR PLAYER”,  U.S.A.  

Whether plugged or unplugged, Hole’s precise and passionate playing ranks with the legends of the genre.”
–“ASSOCIATED PRESS”, U.S.A.  

 

“Yes, Dave Hole is that good.  If this guy played with any more feeling, he’d have to go on Prozac.  Dave Hole is not only a superb guitarist with a distinctive sound, he performs heart-felt vocals with the depth and credibility of any Blues headliner today.
–‘BLUES REVIEW”, U.S.A.  

 

“Easily the most rockin’ Blues guitar dude  in action these days – no one else even comes close.  This guy out of Perth, Australia, just totally shreds – if more bluesmen were like this, there’d be way more Blues fans.”
–“VENTURA COUNTY REPORTER”, U.S.A.  

 

“This blistering steel guitar player’s searing new Alligator  ‘Steel On Steel’ CD is the album I can’t get enough of.  Steel guitar freaks like me, wait’ll you hear this guy play.  You’re just gonna go crazy.”
–“DETROIT FREE PRESS”, U.S.A.  

 

“Dave Hole makes the strings cry, whoop, snarl, howl, screech and coo on his third album “Steel On Steel”
Not since Johnny Winter and Duane Allman has the blues rock world been blessed with slide this sweet, this stinging.
–“SUNDAY HERALD”, Calvary, CANADA 

 

“When the music of Dave Hole crossed the Pacific it was met with an incredible reaction.  Radio programmers, press and fans alike could not get enough of the crackling electricity and raw energy that flows from the man.  Ripping, speaker-melting play-every-note-like-you-mean-it, big-balls-out guitar is what he’s all about.  People still talk about his debut tour of the States in the Fall of 1993, expressing amazement that any of the venues in which he slayed audiences were still standing.
’Steel On Steel’ his third release, features generous helpings of what makes people flock to the Dave Hole party.  Ripping, speaker-melting, play-every-note-like-you-mean-it, big balls-out guitar is what he’s all about.”
--“VINTAGE GUITAR”, U.S.A.  

 

“Probably the greatest blues guitar player of all time.  Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert Collins – name them – no one is nearly as good as this Australian.  Now this is the blues.”
–“VENTURA COUNTY REPORTER”, U.S.A. 

 

“Australia’s Dave Hole has once again delivered a white-hot example of electrifying music. With

overkill in mind, this critic believes that Dave Hole is the best Blues slide player in the world today.
With or without his bottleneck, he has the overall chops of the genre’s finer names.  He is the equal of Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton and Fleetwood Mac’s tortured co-founder Peter Green.”
–“THE PRESS” ATLANTIC CITY, U.S.A.  

 

  “Dave Hole’s overhand slide continues to blaze and amaze.  Elmore James, Hound Dog Taylor and Duane Allman resound in his swoops and slides, while his fingers-on-the-frets forays recall Albert King”.   --“GUITAR PLAYER”, U.S.A. 
 
“Hole plays ferocious, adrenaline-charged electric slide…throws swooping and swirling slide guitar notes into the stratosphere for a dizzying, slash and burn, good-time stomp.  Sizzling and supercharged… a one-way journey to sonic joy.”
–“LIVING BLUES”, U.S.A.

​

“Your jaw drops in amazement as you listen to the sizzling complexity of his playing.  He sings with the same plaintive, sandpapery gruffness we associate with Eric Clapton or Robin Trower.  As for his playing, Hole is just a natural blues-guitar star.”

 

“Another sizzling side of modern blues-rock…original, reverent solo and acoustic tributes to the rural and urban
styles that inspired him.  Hole sings with passion, but it’s his ever-fiery, Duane Allman-style slide that’s the source
of listener whiplash here.”
–“GUITAR FOR THE PRACTICING MUSICIAN”, U.S.A.

 

“Dave Hole is one of the best slide players ever.  His relentless slide strafes and searing single-line solos come at you like a runaway truck down a mountain grade.”
--“DETROIT FREE PRESS”, U.S.A.

 

“Exhilaratingly relentless…he produces solo upon blistering solo.”

       --“GUITAR WORLD”, U.S.A.

 

“…. Harrowing slide guitar solos and rampaging vocals…wickedly seductive….playfully inventive.”

        --“DOWN BEAT”, U.S.A.

 

“Australian slide guitar player Dave Hole is a true everyman of the blues in all but one respect.  No one on the current scene plays with the incendiary power he does...plenty of energy and explosive slide work.  It’s never easy to sit still when he’s churning out a solo.”
--“ASSOCIATED PRESS”, U.S.A.

 

“One of the greatest blues slide guitarists in the world….It’s a blues album (Ticket To Chicago) that drips with emotion.  Hole’s playing defies comparisons.”
--“CHICAGO SUN-TIMES”, U.S.A. 

 

“Dave Holes “Under The Spell” rocks the way we’ve come to expect from the veteran Bluesman.  His blues is pure

 magic. 

He can communicate an emotion or a whole spoken paragraph in one slide guitar note.”     

  - -“FRIDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK, New Jersey, U.S.A. 

​

    “Aussie Dave Hole has been wowing blues fans for about 10 years, and this hot, tight album (“Under The Spell”)   shows why.  Hole is rightly revered for his jaw dropping slide work, but he’s about more than just hot licks.  He’s  a strong, smart songwriter and an edgy, expressive singer.”
--“BLUES REVIEW” Salem, U.S.A. 

 
“Hole delivers a virtual slide guitar feast for the listener (on “Under The Spell”).  His reach, speed and dexterity ranks 

with the best of the rock and jazz greats.  His commanding musical presence leaves his listeners in awe.”

​

“Hole is rightly revered for his jaw-dropping slide work, but he’s about more than just hot licks.  He’s a strong, smart
songwriter and an expressive singer.”
“BLUES REVIEW” U.SA

 

“Dave Hole, the Thunder from Down Under, is back in the States, firing volley after volley of lightening-quick
guitar riffs and dazzling audiences with his slide work.”
–“CHICAGO SUN-TIMES”, U.S.A. 

 

“For those present, it was a wonderfully satisfying night at this venerable New York venue.

One situation many performers face in New York is the futility of playing at anything less than full volume – the sheer noisiness of the crowd often makes it a necessity, but Dave Hole was able to demonstrate his range with a hauntingly quiet, dynamically rich “Run With Me” (from his newest release “Under The Spell)”.

- “BLUES REVIEW”, N.Y. CITY (JAN/FEB. 2000).  (Live review of The Bottom Line, NY City).

 

“Under The Spell” combines excellent acoustic foundations topped with blistering slide work and power-soaked vocals to provide one of the finest blues albums of the year.
“Under The Spell” should be required listening for all fans and students of the slide guitar as well as connoisseurs of the blues in general.”
–“GOLDMINE”, Iowa, U.S.A.  

 

Hole plays ferocious, adrenaline-charged electric slide…throws sweeping and swirling slide guitar notes into the stratosphere for a dizzying, slash-and-burn, good time stomp”.
–“LIVING BLUES”, U.S.A.

 

“Incendiary bottleneck blues…impressive.  Highly recommended.”
–“GUITAR SHOP”, U.S.A.

 

“Slide sensation flaunts fretboard flash…slashing, burning and raucous….Hole’s slide technique is really astounding.”
–“JAZZ TIMES”, U.S.A.

 

“One of the most incendiary guitarists ever.  Jaw-dropping slide work.”
–“BIKINI”, U.S.A.

 

“Searing, steel-guitar-like tones.   Long, fat, sustained notes that screech like a siren with a wildly tremulous vibrato…an effective composer of molten blues-rock tunes.”
–“LOS ANGELES TIMES”, U.S.A.

 

“A combination of wild abandon and surgical precision….soul deep singing and incendiary fret work.  Shuffles and swaggers in the best road-house style.  His slide work dive bombs with fat tone and vibrato, played with string-melting intensity.  His speed and dexterity will leave you scratching your head and wondering how he can pull it all off with style, fire and grace.”
–“BLUES ACCESS”, U.S.A.

 

“Dave Hole is a superlative slide player.  Well, that’s like calling the Grand Canyon a nice nook.  This guy will blow    your mind with his guitar pyrotechnics.”  (“Outside Looking In”)

- IMMEDIA WIRE SERVICE , U.S.A.  

 

“Throughout his 70-minute set at the Bayfront Blues Festival on Saturday his masterful guitar ministrations 
   mesmerised the crowd.”
   - “DULUTH NEWS-TRIBUNE”, U.S.A.  

 

“Outside Looking In” is Hole’s sixth album.  It’s bread-and-butter blues to make your heart skip a beat.
  Hole deliveres the sort of nothing-held-back exuberance that has made him a staple on the blues circuit.”
   - “ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH”, U.S.A.  

 

“Other musicians would have a hard time matching Hole’s excitement on stage.  Hole becomes a dizzying blur of 
   motion on stage, making it hard to tell when he was standing still.  The crowd was mesmorized.”
   - “KANE COUNTRY CHRONICLE” CHICAGO,  U.S.A.   (Live review from “Chord On 
        Blues”)

 

“Hole is the best blues guitar player around…. Pick a song, any song, then stand back.”
  –“VENTURA COUNTY REPORTER”, U.S.A.  

 

“Leaves audiences open-mouthed with amazement”
- “POST-GAZETTE”, BOSTON, MA, U.S.A. 

 

“He’s a more exciting guitar hero than most of his American counterparts.”
– “DENVER POST”, U.S.A. 

 

“This is some fierce slide guitar work, as Hole’s guitar playing, which is positively riveting, punctuates his rocking
   blues rythms.  The title track is one of the best blues numbers to come along in years and his rendition of B.B.
   King’s “You Move Me” will have you moving.  Slide guitar rarely sounded so good as it does on this great
   number.”
    - “THE BLADE” TOLEDO, OH. U.S.A.  

 

“Not your garden-variety guitar hellraiser, Hole control his awesome vituosity just enough to escape charges of 
  grand-standing.  The Aussie finds resolution for the tension he generates so readily with his slider on strings.”
   - “DOWNBEAT” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“Dave Hole”s new album is a firebreathing slide extravaganza.  This is truly worth the admission of owning the CD.
  Boy, can he play.”
   - “VINTAGE GUITAR” MAGAZINE, U.S.A.  

 

“Dave Hole’s business card should say “Guitar Hero”.  He’s the ultimate fast-fingered electric bluesman, flashing
   his bottleneck prowess at every possible moment in these Bad Company-style hard-rock songs.”
   - “BLUES ACCESS” BOULDER, U.S.A.  

​

“Australia’s Dave Hole isn’t big, but he’s a giant of the guitar on his new CD. (“Outside Looking In”)
   The threat of nearly an hour of wailing guitars and shuffling drumbeats could make a release predictable and weary
   but Hole uses songs like his composition “Nobody” to show versatility as well as knowledge of traditional slide
   guitar, making the disc invigorating, not wearying.”
   - “CHICAGO ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT” U.S.A.  

 

“(Dave Hole) is one of those guitarists who plays like someone who doesn’t have a choice.  And that’s the only way
   the blues can honestly be played.”
   - “METRO TIMES”  DETROIT, U.S.A. 

 

“On his first concert album ever, (The Live One) Hole proves that his musical intelligence and his emotional honesty 
   are a formidable as his technical skills.”
   - “AMAZON.COM” 

 

“Dave Hole is one prodigy whose daunting chops always seem to serve the music, and his smoking new CD
  “Outside Looking In” is another ear-bending burst of slide blues brilliance that’s both innovative and faithfull to the
  spirit of the music.”
   -  “CHICAGO TRIBUNE”  

 

“Hole is an extraordinary talent in a very crowded idiom.  While his music surges and crashes it has the
  inexplicable appeal of the ocean demonstrating its awesome power.”
  - “CANBERRA TIMES”, AUSTRALIA 

 

“On his first concert album ever, (The Live One) Hole proves that his musical intelligence and his emotional honesty 
   are a formidable as his technical skills.”
   - “AMAZON.COM” 

 

“The Live One” is one of the purest insights into this man’s truly awesome slide ability ever captured on tape.  An
  amazing display of fluid blues gymnastics from beginning to end”.  “……heavenly slide playing that words 
  couldn’t do justice to.  For those times when too much guitar is never enough.”
  - “AUSTRALIAN GUITAR” MAGAZINE 

 

“The clarity (of the recording) means you catch every biting microtone in Hole’s hellbent fret 
   runs.”
- “ROLLING STONE”, U.S.A. 

 

“From a standpoint of voltage, he reigns supreme.  His electric slide is without peer, and believe me he is hiding
  nothing under that heavily distored signal, he is just trying to reach the greatest number of souls in the most
  electrifying range.  A composer of the first rank, he bares all the influences of figures past and some almost 
  present.  Check out “Purple Haze”.
  –“VINTAGE GUITAR”, U.S.A.  

 

 

“On the highly igniting “Short Fuse Blues”, Dave plays the slide as sweet and aching as it can get.  Then he lets
   rip – depicting images of live wires cracking.  Dave Hole is a modern day rock and roll slide master.”
   -“SOUTHWEST BLUES”, U.S.A.  

 

“The meanest and cleanest blues slide guitar you’re ever likely to hear”

“AUSTRALIAN GUITAR” 

 

“This is the essence of a live show!  For fans or collectors of live recordings, this is a must.  I can’t say too much
   about this CD or I’ll spoil it for you.  Trust me – for raw, live energy – this is a must have.”
   - “BLUES TO DO”,  SEATTLE, U.S.A.  

 

“The album (“the Live One”) brilliantly captures the energy of a Dave Hole performance and will delight his many
   fans – and any disadvantaged slide guitar enthusiasts who have not yet enjoyed the pleasure of hearing the
   remarkable Dave Hole play.”
   - “BLUES IN BRITAIN” 

 

“This Australian slide monster’s off-the-cuff delivery, coupled with a mean and searing tone driven along the 
   border between blues and hard rock, makes for a sonically dangerous experience….still he has a nice side too.
   Just be careful when he turns.”
   - “GUITAR ONE”, U.S.A.  

 

“ Elmore James probably would be surprised to find out that someday the world’s best slide guitar player would hail
    not from Chicago but from Perth, Australia.  The guitarist in question would be, for those who haven’t been
    paying attention, Dave Hole.   If he’s from the hood it’s  a long way from any you or I have ever heard of – but
    the man can make is axe sing, cry, weep and wail, which is all that matters.”
    - ‘SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN”, U.S.A. 

 

        “Man, can Hole play the slide guitar!  His new CD “The Live One” is  a slash and burn rampage through old-

  school blues slide wailing.”
   - ‘CHICAGO TRIBUNE”, U.S.A. 

 

“His (Hole’s) playing has unmatched fluidity.  The fireworks, laser strikes, and machine-gun blast sound
   lubricated, and the quiet, sweet riffs are loose and flowing.  Maybe it’s the assist of gravity, maybe it’s less                                     friction of drag from his fretting hand – whatever it is, he has something new, and since 1992 he’s taken the
   slide world by storm.”

- “BLUES REVIEW”, U.S.A.  

 

 

“Dazzling……an ear-bending burst of slide guitar blues brilliance.”
         - “CHICAGO TRIBUNE”

 

 

 “One of the most exciting and original slide guitarists in the world.”
   - “EDMONTON JOURNAL”, CANADA  

 “His guitar work is flawless……..an outstanding example of slide playing.”

           -  “WMBS” 

 

  “Every track is a gem (“The Live One”) and Hole’s soloing is never anything short of inspiring.  It is, quite

           frankly, one of the great live recordings.”

“BLUES MATTERS”, U.K.  

 

    “He combines red-hot tone, fast and furious vibrato, jaw-dropping fluency and explosive energy to produce solos that sound like they could strip paint.  It’s slide guitar nirvana”.

 -  “THE CANBERRA TIMES” , AUSTRALIA  Live Review
            

 

  “If you have any feeling for contemporary blues, you have to hear Dave Hole.”

           -  “RAMBLES.NET”

 

  “…fret-melting solos developed and refined over the course of a nearly 40 year career.”
           -  “SING OUT, U.S.A. 

 

  “His guitar work is flawless……..an outstanding example of slide playing.”

           -  “WMBS” 

 

  “…..improved vocals, which at times recall those of vintage Johnny Winter.”
           -  “THE ADVOCATE”, U.S.A. 

 

“Dave Hole continues to put out some of the most incredible slide guitar CDs in the genre of the blues.
           …any Dave Hole CD is a must, and this one is no exception.
           -  “HOLLER, U.S.A. 

 

 

  “pushes the envelope with the very best.”
           -  “BLUES REVIEW”, U.S.A.