Brazilian singer and guitarist shows he was born with the Blues in his veins.
Mario Rossi is a Brazilian guitarist and singer based on São Bernardo do Campo (São Paulo State/Brazil). He has been moving forward in music since 2004, when he was 18 years old and made his live debut. Nowadays, as a confident player, he treats riffs, licks and melodies with respect and wisdom. He knows where he wants to go! The guitarist/singer started his journey improving his skills as a cover artist. Classic songs like ‘Key to the Highway’ or Guitar Slim’s ‘The Things That I Used to Do’ were some of the gems in his concerts. In addition, he played Elmore James, B.B. King, Peter Green, Johnny Winter, Eric Clapton, and also Ray Charles’s ‘Come Back Baby’ or Peter Green’s ‘Fallin’ Apart’.
Blues years
Mario Rossi had two unique experiences: in 2013 and then 2015, he joined the band that accompanied the American bluesman John Primer in Brazil. They played in cities in the South and Southeast of the country, including a live performance on The Noite com Danilo Gentili TV show, screened by the channel SBT – one of the biggest TV channels in Brazil. The final balance of all of that brought a permanent framework. In the USA, Mario Rossi toured in recent years. He jammed with NY Blues Hall of Fame members, and played guitar live at the Red Lion Club (Greenwich Village) with a bunch of good ones: David Bennett Cohen (keyboards, Country Joe & The Fish), Arthur Nielson (guitar, Cyndi Lauper/Shemekia Copeland), Sonny Hudson (harmonica), and Mike Muller (bass, Albert King, Luther Allison, The Pretenders and The Ramones).
2019
Electric Art
On November 1st, 2019, the Brazilian guitarist and singer released the first studio album of his own band, Mario Rossi Band. 'Electric Art' is a nice Rock and Blues piece of work. It has 8 new original tracks, with a beautiful vintage guitar tone. The album takes us to golden ages of music (something that’s not seen too much nowadays).
2020
The Same Old Street
Less than one year later, on September 18th, 2020, Mario Rossi Band released a new studio album, 'The Same Old Street'. It’s an intense 10-track journey through Classic and Blues Rock. The songs are all original ones and give us a good taste of his arsenal of riffs and licks inspired by some of the great rockers from the 60’s and the 70’s. The record is a natural step from 'Electric Art', and shows that definitely Brazil isn’t only the Bossa Nova and Samba land. In 2020, The Same Old Street album had several downloads in Europe and North America, as well as a good repercussion in the media. Magazines like Powerplay Magazine (UK) and Rock Hard (Italy) published great reviews and ratings. Some of the songs of this album were played on the main Rock radio stations in London (England) and Rome (Italy). Blues and Rock radio stations in the US, Argentina, Canary Islands, France and Russia also played tracks from The Same Old Street.
2021
Heavy chemistry
Riding the momentum of this strong creative phase, Mario Rossi returned to the studio to record what would become the Heavy album. The release received widespread acclaim, earning some of its highest review scores across Europe. In Russia, the full album reached an average of 600 downloads per day for an entire month. The album also entered the Top 30 chart of best 2021 releases by World Of Metal (Portugal).
2023
Smoke Burst
Smoke Burst is Mario Rossi's highest point. The best, most mature and accurate point of his career. Released independently, his fourth studio album is the perfect illustration of what his musical vein is like.
“It is the most complete work in my discography, both instrumental and in terms of repertoire. It represents my references well and the essence of what I like to hear.”
When we listen to Smoke Burst, we are impacted by an inspiring bunch of songs. A catchy sound, wonderful guitar tones, and a really good band. This makes it easy to embark on this real sound journey. There is a direct connection to our hearts.
“When I make a new album, I always want to hear what I like and what I'm looking for in an album, in a song”, says Mario Rossi. “I play guitar every day and keep a recorder close by as something interesting always comes up.”
This process proved to be efficient and very productive. It has become the powerful fuel with which Mario Rossi has been writing all his albums. Not bad for someone who has pleased critics and audiences from different countries in the last years.
In the case of his new release, the special spice is the fact that the material was all recorded live in the studio. Besides, the band that brought Smoke Burst to life took the album to another level of quality.
Some of the songs feature a talented name as the harmonica master, from Chicago, Steve Bell on “There’s No Hope For Willie Brown”.
The album was ranked 8th among the 50 best blues releases of 2023 by the U.S.-based Roots Music Report chart. All tracks were played on FM radio stations worldwide, and the initial CD pressing sold out.
2025
Steels
After several instrumental songs were so well received by both fans and critics—particularly those from the Smoke Burst album and the track “The Sunshine Jam” from The Same Old Street, which still gets radio airplay—it felt like the right time to release Steels.
This album was an opportunity to bring together songs, tones, and stories, and to let the guitar, especially, do the talking.
For the first time, this release comes through a record label: the great Golden Robot Entertainment from Australia. The label features renowned acts such as Gilby Clarke (Guns N’ Roses), Jefferson Starship, L.A. Guns, and others.
Once again, amazing musicians were involved in crafting nine brand-new original tracks. The album offers a wide variety of songs, all carrying the distinctive identity that Mario Rossi consistently makes a priority.
The current lineup features drummer Rafael Cacavallo, delivering a hard and tight performance, and Bruno Vallim, who has previously played live with the band and now officially takes over on bass.
Some tracks also feature guest drummer Leo Susi, who brings his versatile style. Leo is active in the instrumental music scene, particularly within Brazilian music.
Another guest musician, Edu Malta, brings his unique jazz influence to the opening track, “Manhattan Way.”
The band now continues as a power trio and has plans to record a live album.
To be continued…