“There’s a warm analog feel throughout, and Slater has a fondness for choogling guitars and soft-spoken vocals — he often sings in a murmur, and even when he projects his voice, it’s smooth and unforced. Slater is also a wizard with the groove: each of the nine tracks on The Silver Key sits deep in a pocket: bippity-bap drums and slinky guitar on “Bye (Forever),” for example, or the swift, understated shuffle and acoustic guitar of “One More Ride.”” - Eric Danton, Freak Scene
“An aerial extravaganza [of] mesmerizing Indie Folk, in which soft rhythms are like trees swaying in the winds. An ecstatic moment for your soul, as if you were united with mother nature herself.” - Nagamag
Usually when folks describe JJ Slater’s music, words relate back to nature, the outdoors, the warm sun and the cool breeze. His UMASS Amherst psych-rock band Humble Digs was a mainstay at Stockbridge School of Agriculture events, and ten years later tours are often routed with ulterior, National Park-related motives.
Based in New England, he has toured much of the US, playing festivals, basements, and club gigs, at times opening for artists like Kat Wright, NRBQ, Johnny A, and David Wax Museum. In 2022, he completed a residency at the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, where he wrote his new record “The Silver Key”. It was recorded with a Mass Cultural Council grant in 2023, released at the end of 2024, and you’ll find him touring and playing the full record in 2025. He’ll also be touring with his Americana-Blues road-dog project Signature Dish, co-fronting the band with partner Lexi Weege and lending his songs to a dynamic, soul-journey set.
In between rock bands, funk jams, and jazz brunches, JJ’s guitar playing is always centered and relentlessly rhythmic, with lead work that quotes both gutsy blues and celestial jazz. His songwriting is playful, with an ability to write a catchy hook and chorus, but take you down a minute-long rabbit hole with a wink and a grin- all with a soft, smoky approach to singing that recalls a burn ride with an old friend.