Bio

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

Rock’n’Roll spoken here…

The sound of DownTown Mystic is “vintage yet modern”, continuing in the legacy of rockers like Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen.  The music is rooted in all the great traditions of American Rock‘n’Roll, blending story telling songs with vintage guitars and analog recording into a unique style that owes nods to Buffalo Springfield, The Beatles, CCR, Rockpile and The Rolling Stones but somehow manages to sound as contemporary as anything currently available.

“I grew up listening to all these great records…”

DownTown Mystic is the alter ego of American Rocker, Robert Allen, whose passion for “old school” recording borders on obsession. Robert adds, “I grew up listening to all these great records and their sound and style stayed with me”.

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

Robert is joined by a stellar cast of musicians…

Robert is joined by a stellar cast of musicians, including drummer extraordinaire Steve Holley (Paul McCartney/Wings/Elton John/Ian Hunter) & urban legend Paul Page (Dion/Ian Hunter) on bass, as well as one of the great rhythm sections in the history of American Rock’n’Roll–Garry Tallent & Max Weinberg of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.

2023 has been a banner year for DownTown Mystic with the release of the career defining album, AmeriKarma. This album comes on the heels of 2 major musical statements, 21st Century Rock’n Roll in 2022 and DownTown Mystic On E Street Deluxe featuring Max Weinberg & Garry Tallent in 2021. 10 years earlier, DownTown Mystic’s 1st release, Standing Still, found critical acclaim overseas in 2011. That album made the Top 25 Euro/Americana Chart, which led to a Licensing Deal in Europe distributed by Sony Music.

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

Radio has played an important role in the career of DownTown Mystic…

It started with veteran tastemaker, Jed The Fish, playing a DownTown Mystic track as his “Catch of The Day” on “World Famous” KROQ in LA, one of the most influential stations in the US. This would be followed by the “Mayor of The Sunset Strip”, legendary KROQ DJ Rodney Bingenheimer, playing another track and leading to national airplay. Since then DownTown Mystic has been played on over 5000 stations in 44 countries. The artist has also had a #1 single and #3 album on the Roots Music Report Charts, as well as  going to #1 on the European Independent Airplay Chart.

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

DownTown Mystic placed on The Voice, American Pickers and more…

Besides gaining recognition from Radio programmers, the DownTown Mystic Brand has been developing via Sync Licensing with music placed on over 240 TV shows & films, including The Voice on NBC, American Pickers on the History Channel, as well as shows on MTV, USA, CNN, CMTV, Discovery, and National Geographic. This makes DownTown Mystic one of the top sync-licensed artists in the world.

What they’re saying about Downtown Mystic…

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

courtesy of @markmaryanovich

“I have never heard a rock n’ roll band be so relentlessly high-quality, intelligent, thought-provoking, fun and just wonderful to hear; musically solid, and never-ever boring!”…Rick Jamm/JamSphere Magazine

“Robert Allen AKA DownTown Mystic, took those old school influences that were planted in his musical soul, tended them with reverence, pollinated them with some fresh melodies and produced a tasty crop of tunes”…Kath Galasso/OnStage Magazine

“an originality and uniqueness of sound that is exclusive to the DownTown Mystic project.” …Lisa D’Arrigo/IndieMinded

“powerful harmonies, great guitar interplay and an overall stellar approach to rock songwriting”…Mike Mehalick/Speak Into My Good Eye

“one of the best albums of the year”…John Shelton Ivany/jsiTop21.com

“give this album a good listen. You won’t regret it”…Dani Heyvaert/Rootstime/Belgium

“gobsmackingly good”…Paul Kerr/Blabber’n’Smoke/UK

“genuine emotions and lots of soul”…Rune Hager/Rootsy/Sweden

“brilliantly conceived piece of musical art”…Rod Ames/ReviewYou.com

“unpretentious spirited music with personality and an endless flow of energy that is simply irresistible”…Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck/MuzikReviews.com

“DownTown Mystic is a real pleasure: a pure sound with a brilliant production and top musicians gives the listener the feeling there is still reasons to hope in Music”…Mike Penard “The DJ” / “American Roots Music”/RadioISA/France

“Who has ever succumbed to the charm of Creedence Clearwater Revival, will love Robert Allen’s DownTown Mystic”…Franz XA Zipperer/Piranha/Germany

“With Robert Allen and DownTown Mystic we are in the field of best crafted rock’n’roll”…Davide Albini/Roots Highway/Italy

“Allen’s influences — Byrds, Beatles, Buffalo Springfield — permeate his guitar-driven songs, adding a retro sound to his more modern Americana leanings”…Dave Curtis/Direct Current

Robert & 1976 Les Paul

Robert & 1976 Les Paul

Recordings available in DownTown Mystic Store

7 thoughts on “Bio

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    1. Shalaman Post author

      Thank you for that…much appreciated! But I’m not asking for any donations…yet…lol This site is on me, so please come back as often as you like and tell your friends.

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  5. Neil Quinter

    Hey there. I recently got Rock and Roll Romantic, and am deeply in love with it. I assume you tour? I would love to come see you live– you should have a “Tour” (or similar) section of the website so folks like me can find you, if you do.

    Fwiw, I’m in Maryland.

    Reply

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