Joe Armstrong is an anachronism.  Fans of the new millennium’s prefabricated television pop stars probably won't understand his devotion to the foundations of rock music. Born in Alabama to the son of a moonshiner and raised in the rolling hillls of Illinois, Armstrong is a latter day wayfarer who cut his teeth in the Chicago music scene. His impassioned live performances with The Badass Band earned him a steady fan base, and in 2000 he released his acclaimed debut album, Sidewalk Chalk Manifesto, which was called "a rough-and-tumble record that rattles with echoes of the salad days of college rock" by Performing Songwriter magazine.  Notable performances in Armstrong’s Chicago days include a 4th of July set at WXRT’s Taste Stage at Chicago’s premiere summer festival, The Taste of Chicago - as well as shows from New York to Los Angeles, with many stops in between. 

Armstrong found himself in the producer’s chair in 2002, working with other artists on his Greentown label.  In 2004, Joe packed up his guitar and spent six months wandering through the American West looking for adventure and characters to populate his songs. He found plenty of it after being recruited to tweak guitars and amps for a major label rock act. Armstrong spent a year touring the world, but his dream of being in the spotlight - and not stuck in the wings - eventually won out. He moved to Los Angeles in 2005 and assembled a mighty band that enabled him to realize his vision for his new material.  Armstrong then dug in and began work on what would become his second album, Silverface Champs – to be released in June of 2009. He also recruited a handful of stellar session musicians,including Jim Cuddy of Toronto’s Blue Rodeo and Brian Whelan of indie darlings The Broken West on guest vocals. The record has been compared to Tom Petty for its songcraft and Exile-era Stones for its rock & roll attitude. He may not fit readily into today's test marketed and rigid scene, but Joe Armstrong will leave you with a taste for what music can be.




Joe Armstrong's music swaggers with an urban toughness at the same time that it swings with a rural gait reminiscent of Life's Rich Pageant- era REM, the Cowboy Junkies and Son Volt. On Sidewalk Chalk Manifesto, Armstrong has combined thick production, rambling arrangements, and kick-ass players to make a rough-and-tumble record that rattles with echoes of the salad days of college rock.

The overall effect of Sidewalk Chalk Manifesto is similar to that of a college road trip. It is breezy, both nostalgic and forward-looking, and it evokes long ribbons of highway, mountains, prairies, and not enough sleep. In short, it's excited and breathless, and Armstrong's introspective lyrics counter the aggressive Jayhawks punch of the band.

The record's strongest ballad, "Home," is a simple affair with glistening acoustic guitar, mournful accordion, and an appropriately Michael Stipe-influenced vocal performance. The song sounds as if it was created at the bottom of a very deep, very sad well. Although the record is dominated by sprawling, jangly rockers, "Home" sets the tone-thoughtful, bittersweet, and proficient.

- Performing Songwriter magazine

WXRT radio called Joe Armstrong an experience of "guitars that have a friendly, powerful and magical quality that make you want to listen."

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