The Kilborn Alley Blues Band has graduated from the underground and is providing listeners a graduate course in real Chicago blues on their third Blue Bella CD, Better Off Now. Formed in April 2000 when frontman Andrew Duncanson and bassist Chris Breen were still in high school, Kilborn Alley Blues Band has thrilled listeners, combining youthful energy with veteran understanding of the traditions and nuances of pure Chicago blues. KABB’s first two records were nominated for Blues Music Awards, and Better Off Now makes the case that the third time should be the charm. What’s more, the band recently won the 2009 Blues Blast “Sean Costello Rising Star Award” during the all-star blues gala ceremony at Buddy Guy’s Legends last October.

Rounded out by guitarist Josh Stimmel, harpist Joe Asselin, and drummer Ed O’Hara, Kilborn Alley Blues Band has once again taken a collaborative approach to songwriting, which can be heard in their tightly-woven grooves that eschew self-indulgent solos and unwarranted flash.

These guys take their work seriously but they clearly know how to have a good time, as evidenced by the rowdy Nick Moss-penned “Watch It” and the inventive “You Can Have the Tail,” the former a shuffle with Magic Slim-like power and the latter a showcase for Asselin’s stinging harp. The randy call-and-response rocker “Woah Yeah Woman” leaves no doubt as to what Andrew is so enthused about with his lady. They change pace with the irresistible instrumental, “Bubbleguts,” and then turn in some serious work with “Foolsville” and the tortured blues of “Keep Me Hangin’,” featuring some of Duncanson’s most intense vocals to date.

In his writings on Better Off Now, noted journalist Bill Dahl points out that, “One distinguishing factor setting Kilborn Alley well apart from the pack is the band’s uncommon versatility, which gives them a style of their own. From the outset, their principal influences were a wide-ranging array of heavyweights. ‘Muddy, early Chess, Junior Wells, Buddy Guy following that,’ says Duncanson. ‘Vocals were heavily influenced by R&B, such as Little Milton, Johnnie Taylor, Tyrone Davis, and Buddy Ace.’ Following in those hallowed traditions, they dish up back-alley blues, anguished soul ballads, and churning R&B workouts, comfortably playing all of them because unlike so many of their peers, they comprehend the inexorable connections between each genre and make them their own.”