"A very talented guitarist... and where did that voice come from?" - B.B. King
"Hendrix on crank guitar phrasing... all the soul of Otis Redding and the swagger of Steven Tyler. Anthony joyfully blends the distinction between blues and rock."
"Gomes is a power player who is at his best when his gear is in the scorched earth between blues and rock. After all, it’s the electric guitar; sometimes tickling it is not enough."
With a guitar slung over his shoulder and the amps turned up full tilt, Anthony Gomes electrifies blues and rock at a 21st century crossroads of his own. The Canadian vocalist, guitarist, songwriter and producer wails with all the force of a hurricane in the Mississippi Delta and enough fret-burning fireworks to leave his strings in flames. Over the years, he’s toppled the Billboard Blues Chart at #1, earned the endorsement of legends such as B.B. King, tallied tens of millions
of streams, and packed shows on multiple continents. In April 2025, Anthony Gomes is back with his much-anticipated 14th studio album, Praise the Loud, set for release on Rat Pak Records.
“I’ve learned how to embrace my voice as a guitarist and as a singer,” he states. “I understand who I am, and I use my strengths to my advantage. I have a blues soul and a rock ‘n’ roll heart. I love to jump back and forth between both with a modern day approach. When I play rock, it’s got a little more dust on it."
Born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, he fell in love with music as a kid, listening to everyone from Muddy Waters and Jimi Hendrix to Jeff Beck and Eddie Van Halen. At 14 years old, Anthony gravitated to the guitar and his relationship with the instrument was born. After grinding it out, his chops caught the attention of B.B. King’s bus driver at a jam night. Blown away, the driver introduced him to B.B. who invited him to open up a string of tour dates in 2005. Gaining invaluable knowledge from “The King,” he went on to share the stage with the likes of Buddy Guy, Robert Plant, Joe Bonamassa, Heart, Sammy Hagar, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and more. Along the way, his concert attendees have included Academy® Award winner Morgan Freeman, John Goodman, and Vince Vaughn as well as Eric Clapton, to name a few.
2022’s High Voltage Blues vaulted to #1 on the iTunes Top Blues Albums Chart, #1 on Amazon Music’s New Release Blues Chart and debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues chart. It remained on the Billboard Blues chart for 58 consecutive weeks, landing on 'Billboard's Top 15 Blues Albums of the Year' for both 2023 and 2024.
Meanwhile, Total Guitar listed Gomes as 'One of the 100 Greatest Blues Guitarists of All Time' in 2024. Guitar World readers voted him one of “The 30 Best Blues Guitarists in the World Today” in 2019, and the publication noted, “Gomes is another power player who is at his best when his gear is in the scorched earth between blues and rock.”
Anthony's latest release, 2025's Praise the Loud, delivers 12 fresh studio tracks that showcase Anthony’s musical evolution while staying true to the no-holds-barred sound that has earned him a global fanbase.
Reflecting on the new album, Anthony shares, “On Praise the Loud, we pushed our musical boundaries in every direction. We wanted it to rock harder than anything we’ve done before, but at the same time, we wanted it to have a deeper, more soulful blues feel. When people ask me what I sound like, I say, ‘If B.B. King was in AC/DC, that’s what it would be’. That’s Praise The Loud in a nutshell.”
Gomes cites the track 'Rock & Roll Bluesman' as the thesis of the album. "My favorite line on the album comes from the song ‘Rock & Roll Bluesman’: ‘I don’t care if they love or hate us, gonna turn it up so they won’t forget us.’ That lyric captures the spirit of the album—declaring that we’re playing blues rock on our own terms, no matter what.”
From the powerful rhythms of the album opener “Praise the Loud” to the ZZ Top-inspired groove of “Netflix & Chill,” Anthony tackles a range of emotions and topics with his signature blend of layered harmonies, infectious rhythms, and blues-infused grooves. Tracks like “Meet My Maker,” “Black Diamond Heavy,” and “Electric Blues Crusade” highlight his ability to stretch his creative boundaries and expand his lyrical scope, while songs like “Love Song Gone Wrong” and “In the Name of the Blues” showcase his unmistakable blues guitar mastery. Produced by Peter Carson/Anthony Gomes and mixed by Chris Collier, Praise the Loud packs the punch and energy fans have come to expect from this world-class blues artist.
In the end, Anthony Gomes is just the kind of guitar hero we need for today.
“I still believe in a world of guitar heroes,” he smiles. “I strive for a world where you don’t have to be 19 years old to sell a lot of records and tickets and to make a statement. I’m one of those people who doesn’t think rock, or the blues is dead. I’m looking for fresh ways to bring them together. I’m at the table rolling the dice all in the name of blues and rock ‘n’ roll. I know there’s never been a more exciting time for music, and I’m here for the journey.”
