Hug the Cactus is Gino Matteo's 3rd album and it's clear Gino has come into his own as a true artist. This record takes chances and takes the listener on a legitimate journey.
Gino calls the album "Guitar noises wrapped in poetry about anxiety".
Appropriately titled Hug the Cactus, this album speaks about self acceptance and doesn't care what comes out. Hug your Cactus today.

Mother Maria

Just Let Go

Daydreamers Need Dreamcatchers

The Monster

Always On The Road

Cactus Woman

Fat Cat

Chasing The Dragon

Chocolate Jesus

Follow The Funk

Hear a sneak preview of Jade Bennett's new untitled album.
The song is "Little Red Riding Hood"....
Enjoy!

Vocals and Percussion: Jade Bennett
Guitars, Bass, Drums and Percussion: Gino Matteo

Produced by: Gino Matteo
Recorded at Inland Blue Studios
Engineer: Chris Thayer

Jade Bennett - Little Red Riding Hood

Bennett Matteo Band (BMB) is a collective of brilliant musicians led by guitarist and writer Gino Matteo and vocal powerhouse Jade Bennett.

Extremely improvisational while having their feet planted in roots music, BMB are a breath of fresh air to the music world. BMB's experimentation and refusal to take themselves seriously has made every show an experience. 

Gino Matteo is carving the spot he deserves as a "force of nature" in the roots world. Sensational guitarist, songwriter and powerfully emotional live performer, he empowered the Sugaray Rayford hit machine for nearly a decade. Gino has destroyed countless audiences here in the US and abroad with his powerful wit, gut ripping playing, and incredibly gifted musicianship.

His explosive, spontaneous, and original live show stands with the most legendary of blues players. Gino, along with the gutsy soul-power vocals of his lovely and talented wife Jade Bennett, have been heating up the blues circuit across the western US and internationally. This hard charging dream team brings a raw and soulful interpretation to roots music, moving it forward progressively and creatively.

Bennett and Matteo met in 2010 in Southern California at a gig. Gino ended up sitting in with Jade and once she started singing, he knew they had to play together. They almost immediately moved in together and started writing music while Gino toured with Sugaray Rayford all the while keeping a catalog of music going with Jade Bennett. BMB wouldn't be formed for nearly a decade as Gino's tour schedule became more hectic. 

They played shows together anytime Gino was in town and Jade joined the Sugaray Rayford Band on tour as a backup singer a number of times. Over time, through touring and home life, Jade and Gino decided to go nomad and live full time off-grid. They decided the only thing they wanted to do was play music and live on their own terms. That dream became a reality as COVID swept the world. 

In 2020, just before the pandemic, they had an album done but it went on the shelf as the initial label they were signed to deemed it not blues enough and that they didn't know where to put it.  That's when the record's co-producer and BMB confidant Kid Andersen decided to pitch BMB to Mike Zito's Gulf Coast Records who loved the album and are releasing it.  It not being standard blues became a selling point and not a hindrance.  The album is a collective of their experiences.

Bennett Matteo Band

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