The award-winning roots rockin’ octet Thorbjørn Risager & The Black Tornado are road warriors in the truest sense – not a month passes without them being on tour, it is the environment that they live for, so it’s only fitting that as they are about to head out on an enormous tour across Europe that they reveal their new single, the live version of ‘Said I Was Hurt’.
The song was recorded on 29 November 2025 at Hotel Cecil in Copenhagen, Denmark; one of the band’s final shows on their ‘House of Sticks’ winter tour, and saw the band fully flexing their sophisticated might.
Situated at the heart of Copenhagen, the Hotel Cecil has played home to a Jazzhouse, a Playhouse and originally served as a meeting place, lecture hall, and administrative hub for the women’s emancipation movement in Denmark when it was built in 1936. Set to an Art Deco backdrop, it perfectly suits the smooth, smoky blues sounds from Denmark’s hardest working band.
Thorbjørn adds: “The song is written by our guitarist Joachim Svensmark. This live version of the song was recorded at the wonderful venue Hotel Cecil in Copenhagen in November 2025. It’s always special to perform in your own home town in front of long time friends and fans. The place was packed and the crowd was just wonderful. A very special night where everything just came together perfectly.”
The song is taken from the ‘House of Sticks‘ album, which was released in January 2025 via Provogue/Artone and serves as the perfect foil to winter, it emits a slow warming sensation. Slow and soothing, it’s a song that wraps itself around you in a sorrowful embrace. You can visualise it right now.
The eight piece band adorn the high stage, the curtains are raised and, as the lights are turned down low, the band’s neon logo dominates your attention and the drape flanked room catapults you to another place and another time. That’s where the Danish sensations draw you in; Thorbjørn Risager (Vocals, Electric Guitar), Emil Balsgaard (Organ, Keys), Joachim Svensmark (Electric Guitar), Kasper Wagner (Baritone Sax), Hans Nybo (Tenor Sax), Peter W Kehl (Trumpet), Søren Bøjgaard (Bass) and Martin Seidelin (Drums, Percussion).
They’ve won four Danish Music Awards (with seven nominations), the “Best Band” in the European Blues Awards and won the prestigious German Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik Jahrespreis – German Record Critics’ Awards. Blazing a trail worldwide with more than 1.500 shows, they’ve captivated crowds with their dynamic stage presence and a sound that fuses soul Chicago blues, boogie, and rock ‘n’ roll with a voice where Ray Charles, Van Morrison, and Billy Gibbons meet in the middle. They’ve opened for Bonnie Raitt, the Tedeschi Trucks Band, jammed with the legendary Buddy Guy and even picked up a fan in Elwood Blues himself – Dan Aykroyd! – who hailed their “Hot rhythm and blues.”
They’ve sold over 100.000 physical albums and surpassed 32 million streams over the past two decades with fourteen albums, including eight studio; ‘From the Heart‘ (2006), ‘Here I Am‘ (2007), ‘Track Record‘ (2010), ‘Dust & Scratches‘ (2012), the multi-award-winning ‘Too Many Roads‘ (2014), ‘Change My Game‘ (2017), ‘Come On In‘ (2020), ‘Navigation Blues‘ (2022) and ‘ House of Sticks‘ (2025) as well as a ‘Best Of‘ (2021).
Tour Dates:
Jan 11 – January Blues Festival, London UK
Jan 23 – Blå Kaktus / Arbis, Norrköping (sold out) SE
Jan 24 – Nöjesfabriken, Karlstad (sold out) SE
Feb 6 – Nykøbing Falster Teater, Nykøbing Falster (sold out) DK
Feb 7 – The Tivoli, Helsingborg SE
Feb 20 – Kulturcafé Ludvig, Sorø (sold out) DK
Feb 21 – Karroserifabrikken, Helsingør DK
Feb 26 – Gerd’s Juke Joint, Joldelund DE
Feb 27 – Kulturbastion Torgau, Torgau DE
Feb 28 – Colos-Saal, Aschaffenburg DE
Mar 6 – Hammel Kulturhus / Inside Hamme, Hammel DK
Mar 7 – Kappelborg, Skagen DK
Mar 12 – Jonköping Teater, Jonköping Teater SE
Mar 13 – Bollnäs Jazzklubb, Bollnäs SE
Mar 14 – Katalin, Uppsala SE
Mar 19 – Fabrik, Hamburg DE
Mar 20 – Club Volta, Cologne DE
Mar 21 – Jazzhaus, Freiburg DE
Mar 27 – Frimis Salonger, Örebro SE
Mar 28 – Mejeriet, Lund SE
Apr 1 to 5 – TBA, TBA
Apr 10 – Freja, Skövde SE
Apr 11 – Söderport, Kalmar SE
Apr 23 – Musiktheater Piano, Dortmund DE
Apr 24 – Musiktheater Rex, Bensheim DE
Apr 25 – Music Hall, Worpswede DE
Apr 30 – Budenzauber, Kiel DE
May 2 – Motala Blues Festival, Motala SE
May 7 – Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrecht NL
May 8 – Stadthalle, Schlüchtern DE
May 9 – Fahrzeugbau Meier, Altdorf-Ludersheim DE
May 30 – Tidaholm Blues Festival, Tidaholm SE
Jun 13 – TBA, Erfurt DE
Jun 14 – TBA, Riesa DE
Jun 19 – Blues Garage, Isernhagen DE
Jun 20 – Bluesnacht Petershagen, Petershagen DE
Jun 25 – Riverboat, Silkeborg DE
Line-up:
Thorbjørn Risager – Vocal, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Emil Balsgaard – Piano, Organ, Wurlitzer, Mellotron, Clavinet
Joachim Svensmark – Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Keyboards, Viola, Background Vocals, Mellotron, Drum Programming
Kasper Wagner – Alto Sax, Baritone Sax, Flute
Hans Nybo – Tenor Sax
Peter W Kehl – Trumpet, Fluegelhorn, Sousaphone, Trombone
Søren Bøjgaard – Bass, Acoustic Guitar, Synthesizer, Bass Synthesizer, Electric Guitar, Piano
Martin Seidelin – Drums, Percussion