The Insomniacs took the blues world by surprise in 2007 with their debut recording, Left Coast Blues, which received a 2008 Blues Music Award for Best New Artist Debut. The band (Vyasa Dodson – vocals and guitar; Dean Mueller – bass; Alex Shakeri – keyboards) also received a 2007 Muddy Award (presented by Cascade Blues Association) for Best Contemporary Blues Act. Their exuberant and exhilarating blend of blues, swing, jump, and roots music seems to be a crowd pleaser wherever they go.

So with all those awards and critical acclaim coming after their initial release, it would seem like the bar would set incredibly high for the band’s sophomore effort, right? Well, it is set pretty high, but fortunately The Insomniacs are more than up to the challenge. Their second release for Delta Groove Music, At Least I’m Not With You, continues their hot streak with a vengeance. It features 13 tracks, including seven originals, of jumping west coast blues.

The session was recorded in two days, but consists of material that The Insomniacs have been playing at clubs and festivals for the past couple of years, so the brief amount of time allowed is no factor whatsoever. The original compositions showcase some clever lyrics on tracks like “She Can Talk,” “Angry Surfer,” and the catchy title track. Also included in the originals are a couple of sparkling instrumentals, “Root Beer Float” and “Insomniacs Boogie.”

The covers include the opener, a cool take on Memphis Slim’s “Lonesome,” a laid-back version of Johnny “Guitar” Watson’s “Broke and Lonely,” a smoldering rendition of Junior Well’s “Hoodoo Man Blues,” and Lowman Pauling’s R&B classic, “Baby Don’t Do It.” John Willie Henry’s “Description Blues” is another slow burner (clocking in at over eight minutes) featuring some great fretwork from Dodson and some hot Hammond B3 work from Shakeri.

Stopping by to lend a hand are harmonica aces Al Blake and Mitch Kashmar, Joel Paterson on pedal steel guitar, and Jeff Turmes on sax. It all adds up to another winner from The Insomniacs. At Least I’m Not With You is a marvelous set of West Coast blues that will please their ever-expanding fan base.