Stephen Poppell

"Jimi Hendrix inspired me with his fantastic talent as well as his unconventional style, his backward and upside-down guitar playing. Muddy Waters showed me the
beauty of the raw, simple but powerful music of the Deep South. Lynyrd Skynyrd was a big influence not only because of the great southern rock style and dual leads,
but a special inspiration because they were local boys like me in Jacksonville, Florida." Steve Poppell's own words about his musical influences.

I don't know if Georgia native Stephen Poppell has ever been near a deep, dark Louisiana swamp like my friend Tony Joe White, but if not, he certainly could have
fooled me. Tony Joe could have written "Alligator Joe" but the Wolfpack beat him to it. John Fogerty had never seen a swamp when he wrote tunes like "Born On The
Bayou" and these guys are an ocean away from a swamp themselves. I toured with the original Lynyrd Skynyrd with the original Charlie Daniels Band and these guys
would have fit right in on any of those tours. Billy Cox, from the Jimi Hendrix Experience was the original bass man in the CDB, so no doubt, Stephen takes that as a compliment.

A hip but traditional sound is their trademark. Stephen has a velvet voice, rich and rough and the tracks tell stories that center around love and life's realities. The
songs are virtual novels reduced to several minutes. I especially like the JJ Cale style blues feel of "Tell Me Darlin" and the line,"Tell me darlin' what can I say? You
ain't listening anyway." That is just plain Tulsa style, and that's cool I don't care who you are!

Along with the Wolfpack, Stephen concocts a vivid blend of Americana, blues, Southern rock and even country, complete with richly evocative lyrics and an
easygoing sense of plainspoken songs. Clever arrangements, laid back rhythms that are interesting, hypnotic and throw down funky. An overall imaginative collection
of thought provoking lyrics with an easy comfortable feel that explore a diverse array of musical roots.

Stephen never oversells these songs, he lays back and sings them with heart and wonderfully textured reading. His singing is complemented by his band, who are
equally as warm, relaxed, and engaging. This is music that goes down so easy, and on subsequent plays you realize how fully realized and dare I say it, different from
the rest of the pack it really is :)

Stephen stays safely away from the trap I call the hi-tech curse: all the sounds that he produces are always firmly controlled by the man, never imposed on him by
producer hacks. That's because he doesn't have a producer. Which makes it all the more interesting and even better. If the formula works don't mess with it. Check
out the wah-wah guitar on "Thing Called Love", one of my personal favorites. When these guys rock the grooves are big enough to park a tour bus in.

The end result is an irresistible group of blues infected, spirited, well crafted performances by a great up and coming Indie artist. The effect sets in on succeeding listens, with his stunning minimalism and, above all, that deeply-felt sincere and utterly humane nature of all the songs. In blues-rock, it is usually not the actual melody that is important - the melodies are all already written - but the approach and attitude.

A great band, Stephen Poppell and the Wolfpack are one of my top runners up in my Sonicbids International Song Competition. I should give them all a trip to the
Mississippi Delta so they can see where their music comes from! I would recommend crossing a body of water like Hendrix did when he quit backing strippers at Printers Alley and headed for Britain. Or the British Invasion in reverse. It can be brutal to get respect in your hometown. Come on over to America and be heroes.

These guys can quit their day jobs, or get a day job and then quit.In the immortal words of Bill Murray, I want to party with you dudes :)

-Gary Allen (The Charlie Daniels Band/JJ Cale)
- www.tennesseeconcerts.com (reviewed by Gary Allen, drummer for

International appeal with a Southern Rock charm describes the music of Stephen Poppell & The Wolfpack Band. The lead singer of the group, Poppell, has many of his roots planted deep down in the south near our neck of the woods. Having now lived in Europe for many moons, now the seasoned performer still rocks with a powerful vocal that adds to the overall flavor of the group and what makes them so wonderful to listen to.

If you are a fan of Southern Rock/Country, then Stephen Poppell & The Wolfpack Band delivers on entertaining the masses of that genre. One of the best abilities of the band is their electrifying energy and good ole’ time feel that one gets when listening to their music. I also am a big fan of the band’s melodic tunes and enriching lyrics that easily tell passionate stories of everyday life’s ups and downs. Want to hear music that speaks to one’s heart& soul? Then, take a chance with one of the best bands currently out in the Indie Music Industry.

- Junior's Cave Online Magazine

Translation from Dutch:
"Think of the laid back singing style of someone such as Tony Joe White, the relaxed groovy feel of J. J. Cale, mixed with the blues of Taj Mahal and a bit of Blue Grass and Western Swing. Then you get a good idea of the sound of the Wolfpack Band's music. A mix of musical styles from the southern states of the United States, where singer songwriter Stephen Poppell spent his youth." - Desmet (Netherlands)

translated from Dutch:
"Stephan produces beautiful alternative country and Americana songs with his guitar playing and warm voice. His music is comparable with that of Hans Theessink and J. W Roy. This CD (Mississippi Crying) first appeared in 2006 and reached us a bit late, but the music appeals to us so much that we don't want you to miss it.
"The music is generally laid back, with a very comfortable bluesy atmosphere. Stephan's voice is what one in the States calls "gritty," but really warm. The choice of the two covers is excellent: "Dreams" from the Allman Brothers and "You're Gonna Need Somebody" from Taj Mahal, two songs that I always enjoy hearing but now they get their own "Stephan Poppell" version, so that they mesh wonderfully overall.
"His own songs, as I already said, are calm Americana stories, lovely compositions with texts that have a tale to tell. The title song "Mississippi Crying," for instance, looks at the New Orleans disaster with Katrina. The band's sound is beautiful, the recordings are professional, and Art Willems's fiddle fits the music perfectly."
- Rootstime.be (Belgium)