Ian Moore with New Earth Farmers

Ian Moore, the Seattle-based, Austin, TX-born guitar player, singer and songwriter makes the proverbial renaissance man look lazy.  Coming on the heels of Strange Days, his most successful record since his eponymous debut and despite a never-ending cycle of touring, Moore offers a new release of bright, blazing rock-n-roll that combines his legendary guitar prowess with radio-friendly songs that showcase his elastic, soul-inflected vocals.
 
“It’s a very different climate right now. When we hit a city, it doesn’t matter that i have 14 records, radio hits, etc. The only thing that matters is if we can really show up and leave the people feeling they saw something amazing. It keeps me hungry, and I like the challenge”  says Moore.

For years, Ian has had his eyes on the challenges faced by musicians of every stripe, having experienced the spectrum of artist successes and tribulations over a nearly 30-year career. In response, he founded the artist’s healthcare alliance SMASH (Seattle Musicians Access to Sustainable Healthcare) and has joined the board of NARAS for the Pacific Northwest as governor and head of the advocacy committee.

You might have been surprised to hear Moore’s voice popping up on major network shows on prime time television this past year;  several selections were prominently being featured as performances on both American Idol and The Voice (“Satisfied” and “Blue Sky”).

Moore’s story is often told and probably familiar to most critics; his initial record on Capricorn propelled him to national tours with the Rolling Stones, ZZ Top and Bob Dylan, acting in the acclaimed indie feature Sling Blade and having Ice Cube direct the video for his track “Harlem.”

Moore deviated from his initial blues-oriented guitar sound on subsequent records, touching on graceful pop songs and the psychedelic as well as British pub rock and deep Americana. Toronto and its 6 tracks represents those influences in such a way that they have informed his songwriting, but is likely more recognizable as a strong collection of the kind of guitar rock his core fan base would respond to immediately.