Michael Blum is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He was named the "Rising Star" guitarist in the 63rd Annual Critics Poll in DownBeat magazine.
Life and career
1993-2011: Early life
Blum was born in Great Neck, New York to a musical family. His father, a classical guitarist, was his first music teacher. Blum began his music studies on piano, then played saxophone before ultimately studying guitar at age nine.
2011-2019: Jazz releases and ''The Reservoir''
In 2011, Blum began studying at Dartmouth College, from which he graduated with a double major in music and cognitive science. During the summer of his freshman year, Blum worked as a pit musician at the New London Barn Playhouse, where he decided to pursue music professionally. He soon began studying with Berklee College of Music professor, Jim Stinnett, who previously taught Blum's father. After studying with him for a year, Stinnett suggested that he and Blum record an album together. In February 2014, Blum released his debut jazz album, Initiation, with his quartet, which features bassist Jim Stinnett, pianist Brad Smith and drummer Dom Moio. All About Jazz called Initiation a "stellar debut." In a review of Initiation, Downbeat Magazine compared Blum to "Kenny Burrell, Charlie Byrd, Jim Hall, JohnnySmith, Emily Remler...or Columbia-era George Benson," and called Blum "an articulate player who executes with clarity... shows unusual maturity." In a review of Initiation, Vintage Guitar Magazine said, "Hope for jazz guitar's future abounds in this release by the 20-year-old Blum and his quartet… the perfect debut for a player who seems wise beyond his years." In June 2015, Blum was named the "Rising Star" guitarist in the 63rd Annual Critics Poll in Downbeat Magazine. That same month, Blum released his second album and vocal debut, Commitment, which features bassist Jim Stinnett, pianist Brad Smith, saxophonist Fred Haas and electric bassist Grant Stinnett. The next year, Blum released Chasin' Oscar: A Tribute to Oscar Peterson, which Downbeat Magazine praised for its "enviable and rare combination of technique and taste." Later in 2016, Blum released Expansion, a jazz fusion project. In January 2017, Blum released his first jazz-pop album as a singer-songwriter, The Reservoir.
2019-present: ''Taking You Back'', ''Promises'' and ''Save Me''
In March 2019, Blum announced that he had begun a new solo project with his single "Taking You Back," and shared his plans to release a new EP. In June 2019, Blum released the second single from his solo project, "Promises," a self-produced up-tempo track inspired by uncertainty in his life. In October 2019, Blum released the third single from his solo project, "Save Me," an up-tempo track inspired by Blum's personal battles with anxiety.
