The Rising
Coming Home
Renegade Maverick
Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy Country Rock Prime–Cuts
I’d not heard of The Rising prior to seeing their name attached to the forthcoming Jess and the Bandits tour; but their record company sent this CD anyway.
While I’ve been inundated with albums lately; I still found time to play this; although out of courtesy more than anything else.
Wow!
Most Americana bands I review; and in fairness most bands I like, are quite quite edgy and often a bit miserable in their lyrics and style of playing. The Rising are at the other end of that spectrum and proved a great companion for yet another long motorway journey.
Opening with anthemic Calling You; the trio quickly had me nodding my head to the infectious beat ; and the rakishly handsome Tristan Harris’ voice will have ladies of all ages going weak at the knees.
City By the Sea shares a title with my favourite song by Sunderland collective The Lake Poets; but apart from Belfast and Sunderland being ‘cities by the sea’ they couldn’t be more different. This song is very radio friendly; with a strong message about coming from and leaving their home city. Now I think about it, it could be a companion piece for Energy Orchard’s Belfast which I fell in love with 20 years ago.
The Rising were apparently originally a four piece Rock Band; and repeated listening makes that obvious; as their take on Country Rock has a powerful swagger to it; rather than most bands easy-listening Laurel Canyon vibe.
For relatively young lads they have a really ‘tight feel’ to their playing; alongside Harris’ cracking voice, Chris Logan plays a pretty mean guitar (banjo, mandalin and piano too) while bass player Andy Morgan orchestrates the whole show alongside a Shane Walters on the drums.
Probably aimed at a younger demographic than the one I inhabit The Rising can really write a quality modern Country song and deliver it with panache and restrained power. Highway to the Lost and Found is a great example, as is the Bon Joviesque Label Girl.
The finale is a bit of an epic tale, coming in at nearly 7 minutes long, but Return to the Moon (song for the Human Race) is worth the investment and I’m sure will be a real pot-boiler when played live.
Normally I’m championing singer-songwriters from this much maligned part of the UK but Northern Ireland has done it again with a band that are destined for a stadium near you very soon.
http://www.therisingmusic.com/
Released August 2015
The Rocking Magpie 