Album Notes

The Northern Whiskey Sydicate is a band of 3 friends who grew up in Detroit under the varied influences of Motown, blue collar rock, punk, hillbilly blues and old-time country. The lyrics poignantly reflect life in the rust-belt, love lost (and found),trying to make a living, going to war and coming home. The guitar, drums & bass format is powerful and direct. Sometimes hard driving, sometimes quiet and reflective, often all that and more in the same song. Harmonica underscores the emotion on several songs.
The Northern Whiskey Syndicate's live performances are dynamic and attention grabbing. The CD endeavors to capture the same feeling.

Specific influences range from early REM and the Clash to Steve Earle and Son Volt. You can hear some Who back there among the Johnny Cash, as well as lesser known bands like Buffalo Tom and the House of Freaks. Mike Sobieski's drums are a polyrhythmic feast that compliment Steve Presti's punk rock bass and Kevin Anderson's driving guitar and mid-western vocals.

The Port Huron, Michigan, Times-HErald had this review for the album:


Northern Whiskey Syndicate: Northern Whiskey Syndicate

By Bill Chapin

Northern Whiskey Syndicate started as a side project for three members of the now-defunct Loaded 44s to express their darker, roots-rock tendencies. The trio's eponymous debut CD achieves that goal with a melancholy beauty.
Within the first 30 seconds of the opening track, a gentle electric guitar arpeggio has given way to a pounding backbeat and distortion. Then Kevin Anderson's dark voice pierces the sound, singing, "The north wind builds under a leaden sky."

With an honesty reminiscent of the heartland rock and Son Volt's Jay Farrar and certain John Mellencamp albums, the CD's seven tracks keep driving like the character in Golden State Promises who is returning home after a failed attempt to make a life in California.

"I'm rolling through the heartland, starting to feel like home again," sings Anderson of East China Township. "There's hope in the sunrise."

The songs are scattered with Anderson's folksy harmonica and such bleak lyrics as "it'll take a month's hard rain to wash the blood off this land." Bassist Steve Presti and drummer Mike Sobieski provide a driving rhythm section.

Other press reviews:


City Beat Magazine, Cincinnati Ohio, (Midpoint Music Festival) September 27, 2007

NWS have gone on to win the allegiance of most every audience lucky enough to experience them and anyone whose heard their self-titled debut EP and 2005's excellent Voltead 33.



Toronto Now Magazine, NXNE Program, June 6 -14, 2007

Their alt-country sound conjures up a ghost town's worth of lost memories like all good story tellers should.




University of Waterloo, Imprint Newspaper, June 15, 2007 (NXNE review)

A Michigan alt-country rock band called the Northern Whiskey Syndicate completely took over local pub The Black Bull...awesome rock caliber....the dinner-eating, beer-drinking patrons who only came to the bar to eat and drink that night had no choice but to pay due attention to the three loud guys in the corner. Fortunately, those three guys were worth paying attention to.


Cincinnati City Beat, September 20, 2006

They named one of their albums after the repeal of the act that ended Prohibition (Volstead '33) and, together with their other album (self-titled), The Northern Whiskey Syndicate strives to tell stories that will have you reminiscing about the bar fights that occurred as weeds tumbled through an old ghost town. Slowly sip your whiskey, sirs and madams. (sounds like): Darker Jason and Scorchers telling timeless stories.