Ben J Carter

Ben J Carter is a one-man band. He plays acoustic guitar, keeps the beat with a foot stomp and percussion, and brings out a bottleneck slide for his takes on old-time country blues. A set can move from soaring slide and blues hollers to quiet folk ballads. The covers nod to bluesmen like Robert Johnson, Skip James, Fred McDowell and Lightnin' Hopkins, and there are plenty of his own folk songs as well. His debut album, These Winters They Howl, shows off his fingerpicking. He's been playing venues, events and festivals across Victoria since 2015. For a winery afternoon, a bar or a festival stage where people want real roots music, one performer is all it takes.