"A dazzling gumbo of songs." Acoustic Mag (UK)
"Barefoot Wonderland is right: Bernasconi is so laid back here you can see the soles on those bare feet."
Rolling Stone Magazine (AUS)
"Like Leo Kottke and John Fahey on the instrumentals and John Prine on the songs."
fRoots Magazine (UK)
"One of this country's most interesting acoustic guitar talents."
Australian Guitar Magazine
About
Named as ‘One of this country’s most interesting guitar talents’ by Australian Guitar Magazine, Justin Bernasconi is a rarity among guitarists and songwriters. Straddling styles and sounds from the Delta Blues, Appalachian Bluegrass, English Folk and all stops in between, his highly original tunes are infused with exciting and soulful guitar playing.
Bernasconi’s 2017 album Barefoot Wonderland has been embraced by fans and critics with Acoustic Magazine describing it as ‘a dazzling gumbo of songs’ and was equally acclaimed by Rolling Stone, and The Age. Justin embarked on nationwide Australian tour, and flew to the UK launch the album in London. UK mag fRoots simply wrote “like Leo Kottke and John Fahey on the instrumentals and John Prine on the songs’.
Justin's highly formed guitar technique is both detailed, smooth and sweet, but what makes his picking style so unique is the delivery of his timing. His deceptively laid back sense of time keeps the listener from being able to guess what the next phrase will be, making his compositions sound like they were improvised in the studio.
A month before its release, Barefoot Wonderland picked up an unlikely mention in Australian Hi Fi magazine review of a Pioneer PD CD player, which best described his style as: 'If you thought you've heard picking before, you haven't heard of Justin Bernasconi. You can also hear how he beautifully plays so nearly aching-near off-the-beat, but always resolves in time to bring back his excursions back on track. Is it bluegrass? Is it folk? Who cares, it's enormous fun!'.
Raised in the small Cambridgeshire village of Warboys - famed for witches and WW2 Lancaster Bombers - Bernasconi was never short of a story to tell. He moved to Australia in 2004, and formed The Stillsons in 2006. The band has released three critically acclaimed albums so far: Circus (2009), Earnest (2011); and Never Go Your Way (2013), the latter being voted ‘Country Album of 2013’ in Rhythms Magazine Readers Poll.
In 2014 he released his debut solo album Winter Pick. Produced by Jeff Lang, the album demonstrated his love of British and American folk guitar styles, and featuring stories from his childhood. Winter Pick received glowing reviews in many other Australian publications, including: The Australian, The Age, Australian Guitar Magazine, and UK magazines: R2 Magazine (Rock N Reel), Guitar Techniques, and Maverick.
Bernasconi has been regular at major folk festivals, including: Woodford Folk Festival, Melbourne Guitar Show (2016), Port Fairy Folk Festival (2015) and Melbourne Guitar Makers Festival (2015).
Bernasconi’s 2017 album Barefoot Wonderland has been embraced by fans and critics with Acoustic Magazine describing it as ‘a dazzling gumbo of songs’ and was equally acclaimed by Rolling Stone, and The Age. Justin embarked on nationwide Australian tour, and flew to the UK launch the album in London. UK mag fRoots simply wrote “like Leo Kottke and John Fahey on the instrumentals and John Prine on the songs’.
Justin's highly formed guitar technique is both detailed, smooth and sweet, but what makes his picking style so unique is the delivery of his timing. His deceptively laid back sense of time keeps the listener from being able to guess what the next phrase will be, making his compositions sound like they were improvised in the studio.
A month before its release, Barefoot Wonderland picked up an unlikely mention in Australian Hi Fi magazine review of a Pioneer PD CD player, which best described his style as: 'If you thought you've heard picking before, you haven't heard of Justin Bernasconi. You can also hear how he beautifully plays so nearly aching-near off-the-beat, but always resolves in time to bring back his excursions back on track. Is it bluegrass? Is it folk? Who cares, it's enormous fun!'.
Raised in the small Cambridgeshire village of Warboys - famed for witches and WW2 Lancaster Bombers - Bernasconi was never short of a story to tell. He moved to Australia in 2004, and formed The Stillsons in 2006. The band has released three critically acclaimed albums so far: Circus (2009), Earnest (2011); and Never Go Your Way (2013), the latter being voted ‘Country Album of 2013’ in Rhythms Magazine Readers Poll.
In 2014 he released his debut solo album Winter Pick. Produced by Jeff Lang, the album demonstrated his love of British and American folk guitar styles, and featuring stories from his childhood. Winter Pick received glowing reviews in many other Australian publications, including: The Australian, The Age, Australian Guitar Magazine, and UK magazines: R2 Magazine (Rock N Reel), Guitar Techniques, and Maverick.
Bernasconi has been regular at major folk festivals, including: Woodford Folk Festival, Melbourne Guitar Show (2016), Port Fairy Folk Festival (2015) and Melbourne Guitar Makers Festival (2015).