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Godless, Sea of Flames and Blake Whiten: EPs Galore!

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Another week, another offering of awesome EPs for us to look at, from rock to metal to country! Let’s check it all out!

Godless: Genesis of Decay

The Indian death metal band put out their first release since their 2021 debut album today, and it is every bit as good as that was. Right from the offset, opener ‘Amorphous Mass’ starts things off with a bang and sets the tone of the release perfectly. The. You have the absolutely incredible riffing in ‘Doctrine of Hate’, the sheer balls-to-the-wall assault of ‘Silent Oppression’ and ‘Echos of Collapse’ rounds things out perfectly. This whole thing is insanely solid from front to back; 15-minutes of well-crafted modern death metal. I honestly loved this a lot, far more than I expected to. The production on it was phenomenal and it almost gave Fit for an Autopsy vibes, which I am more than down with. The band have a big new fan in me, and if you are a fan of the heavier side of the modern metal world, I cannot recommend this enough. It’s a solid 9/10 from us!

Sea of Flames: Mercury

The Denver quartet are on their 13th year as a band, celebrating in style with their fourth EP. What an EP it is, too! Masterfully combining hard rock, stoner and heavy/alt metal together, the closest thing I can compare it to is Spirit Adrift. It’s packed full of awesome riffing, catchy melodies and overall great songwriting. The pace is pretty full-on and almost gives thrash vibes at times, not that that is at all a complaint! Tracks like the opener, the White Zombie-like ‘Never Get Out of the Boat’ and the grunge-meets-early-Tool ‘Inspo’ are all personal highlights. However, every song is just as good as the last on this, and all six are well worth a listen! The band are incredibly talented and the fact that they don’t have more buzz around them is honestly criminal. It immediately made me a fan of the band and made me desperate to hear a full album from them after all these years. I cannot recommend this EP enough to anyone, and it’s made me instantly want to go back and listen to their older stuff. I’ll be listening to this a lot moving forward, and it’s another easy 9/10!

Blake Whiten: Six Mile

The South Carolina neo-traditional country singer-songwriter released his highly anticipated debut EP today, and it’s fucking awesome! We’ve sadly heard 4/6 of the songs before as singles, but that doesn’t take away from the quality and impact of the release at all. His voice is haunting and packed full of weight and emotion and a harshness far beyond his years. It gives off big Last Knife Fighter or Wyatt Flores or even Cody Jinks vibes, which I love. It’s simple, just Blake’s guitar and vocals for the most part, but he’s got such a commanding presence that it doesn’t at all feel empty or lacking. It’s so hard to pick highlight tracks as they are all so good, and pretty similar due to the stripped-back nature. It honestly gave me goosebumps multiple times throughout; it may be one of the best vocal performances of the year, at least in country. He has an incredibly bright future ahead of him, and it’s no wonder he’s gotten so big off just a few singles. I might be a little obsessed, but I cannot recommend this enough to anyone reading this, be a country fan or otherwise. It’s a darker, later-Cash-style of the genre, and it fits Blake perfectly. I can’t give this anything less than 9.5/10, wow!

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Deeper Shades of Torment: One of the Best Debut EPs Ever?

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The Nottingham newcomers Rattlesnakes are taking the UK underground by storm already, with just one single under their belts so far. That is all set to change on the 14th when they release their debut EP. We’ve gotten pretty friendly with the band in recent months and have become huge fans, so there was no way we weren’t reviewing this. Join us in checking it out!

‘Burn for You’ opens surprisingly reserved, with a simple drumbeat and clean guitar chord progression. However, it sets an ominous atmosphere right out of the bat, which I like. It almost has an air of Slayer’s ‘Seasons in the Abyss’, which is never a bad thing. It also bursts in with a huge, fast distorted riff, before Rowena’s effortlessly powerful vocals come in over the top. It instantly gives it more of a Priest/Skid Row feel, but with a modern edge. The verse and pre all build to a massive, catchy chorus, the harmonies and backing vocals making it so easy to sing along to. Having said that, though, some of her melodies in the verses, and the ‘ooo’s in the pre, are equally catchy. We get some awesome, Maiden-like guitaring in the bridge, the harmonies between the guitars and the bass being INCREDIBLE. And of course we get a sick, duelling guitar solo, too. And then a huge final chorus takes the track home in style. This is a fantastic track, and an awesome way to open the album. It easily makes it onto our playlist!

Upcoming single ‘Firestarter’ is up next and is another absolute banger. That riff to open it is incredible, especially with the bass drum following it. The pace is blinding and doesn’t let up at all, yet again harkening back to the 80s speed metal and sleaze scenes. An awesome, catchy verse leads into an even more arena-filling pre and chorus. The band are masters of writing this sound already, incredible for such a new band early in their careers, as well as being so young! Everything from the powerful vocals to the awesome riffing to the amazing drumming to the impressive shredding is all top notch. I absolutely love that we have bands doing this sort of stuff these days, especially making it still fit a modern sound and audience, as it is right up my street. Another huge highlight!

After a short interlude, ‘Love Me Harder’ explodes in with more awesome, heavy, sleazy metal riffs. It’s more expected awesomeness; great riffing and catchy, powerful vocals and melodies from Rowena and the backing vocals. I absolutely love the ‘Dissident Aggressors’ style chorus, and remember loving it live too. And the slowed down bridge with the harmonised soloing… *chef’s kiss*. It was a nice little pace and dynamic shift that does so much for the track! And heck, we even get a quick little growl at the end, that I’m already desperate to hear more of. It’s yet another awesome track on a release packed full of them!

The closing track is another predictably amazing song. I don’t know how many more times I can say it, but awesome riffing, great drumming and incredible vocals. The band really are the full package! It’s another catchy as anything chorus too, just begging to be played in front of massive festival crowds. I love the catchiness of the ‘woh’s too, that will surely go down a storm live. It’s another awesome song, even if I was running out of stuff to say about it all by this point without just openly gushing!

Overall: my god, what an AMAZING release. It’s an impressive hard rock/metal EP as it is, but the fact that it’s a debut too just pushes it up into even more impressive territory. All four songs are excellent and just as good as each other. Every single one could be a massive radio single on their own right, and I so hope this release gets the love it deserves in that regard. It honestly feels similar to that first BFMV EP, that’s how big I can see this and the band being in the future. I cannot recommend this release enough to anyone reading this, and I already want to hear even more from the band!

The Score: 9.5/10

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Gore Force V and Nastiriff: EPs Galore!

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A smaller-than-usual but still awesome week for EPs, with two awesome releases for us to check out!

Gore Force V: Tails From the Deep

This is absolutely ridiculous in the best possible way. I love a band that doesn’t take themselves too seriously, and that is never more apparent than ‘The Fish EP’. Three grindy death metal tracks about characters from Finding Nemo, what more could you possibly want? While it’s not quite my side of death metal, it’s very old-school and early Cannibal Corpse, I couldn’t not love it. There are awesome riffs throughout and some truly great screams scattered among them. The band are clearly insanely talented at what they do, and are good songwriters to boot. ‘Grinding Nemo’ was a personal highlight, though all three tracks are pretty great. No idea why it’s so horny, but I’m all for it! In a sub-genre that usually takes things a little too seriously and depressingly, this was a breath of fresh air! If you’re into that older death metal sound, I’d certainly recommend checking this out! And at only seven minutes, it’s impossible not to love! 8/10

Nastiriff: Malus

This fuzzy, hard/indie rock collection is a great, fun listen. There are so many different sounds and inspirations throughout, combining together to create something truly unique and interesting. From old-school punk and rock to modern indie, blues and alt rock, it’s a really interesting mix. Heck, there’s even some grunge and psychedelic touches to it throughout, too. Tracks like the opener, ‘Conservative’ and ‘Bang’ are all personal highlights, but that certainly doesn’t mean the other two tracks are bad by any stretch. Heck, every single one feels and sounds so different and unique, while somehow still sounding like Nastiriff. It’s impressive, and a true testament to the bands sheer talent as songwriters. It’s not going to be for everyone, but I absolutely loved this and will certainly be revisiting it again a fair bit in the coming weeks and months. It’s worth checking out no matter what you’re into, as you’ll probably love it as much as I do! It’s a solid 9/10!

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Nebula Nine, Redferrin and More: EPs Galore!

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A surprisingly stacked week of short releases this time, with six awesome EPs.(and a lot of country) for us to check out! Let’s dive right in!

Nebula Nine: The Last Sky Piercer

This epic prog rock offering is a damn good EP, introducing the listener perfectly to their sound and style. Outside of the obvious interesting, epic prog elements, the riffing throughout is another big highlight for me. That is no more obvious than in the awesome ‘Terminal’, a personal highlight track of me on the release. However, all four songs on this collection are awesome, and all fit together rather perfectly. It takes you on a real journey, and is a lot of fun to be on it! I still don’t know what the term ‘sublime’ at the start of progressive rock is that it was described to me as, but that’s certainly a word that I’d use to describe the EP, for sure! It does feel different to a lot of other releases in the prog spectrum too, so maybe that’s it. It’s even pretty easily digestible prog, so I’d recommend this to anyone reading this who’s into rock at all. It’s an excellent debut release, and the band certainly have a big new fan in me! 9/10

Zach Top & Billy Strings: Me & Billy

This trio of traditional country tracks from two legends of the genre is honestly awesome, and a lot of fun to listen to. Both me are of course insanely talented, and their vocals work phenomenally well together. Heck, their styles and writing in general fit together like two jigsaw pieces. It definitely won’t be for everyone, but I loved all three songs. It called back to a bygone age of country but done well enough that it held my attention for all of it’s just over 10 minute runtime. It’s the perfect little country collection, and shows why they are both such huge names, especially for their insanely young ages. And the fact that this is a live recording makes it even more impressive! Both their vocals are incredible, and the fact that it’s just them, their guitars and some simple drumming but still sounds so good is insane.

If you like country in any stretch actually, check this out, it’s well worth it! It brought a huge smile to my face throughout, and I can’t give it any less than 10/10. Honestly, if it was any longer it may have gotten a lower score, it really is perfect!

Redferrin: Some City, Somewhere

The second EP from the pop-country breakout star is just as good as his debut. I originally had this in my album list, but apparent country considers seven tracks over 20-minutes as an EP these days. Shhh, don’t tell the hardcore bands. But either way, this is another incredible addition to his discography. ‘Ruin my Night’ is an amazing opener, and it just carries on with the same awesome sound and quality after that. Also, it’s really cool to hear ‘As Long as There’s a Bar’ finally all this time after he first mentioned it in our interview! My favourite track on it is probably ‘Mornin’ Montana’, but it’s honestly closely followed by all the rest! Every track is a fantastic listen, and they all flow together perfectly. It’s a very good, chilled out modern country album, and definitely worth a listen if you’re a fan of Red or the style he plays. It’s another solid 8.5/10 from me, excellent stuff!

Refiner: Return to Dust

Now, if you told me that two tracks is hardly an EP, I’d agree with you. However, both these tracks are awesome, and the fact that it was produced by just one Canadian guy is absolutely insane. Plus, we are also getting both tracks as instrumental versions on the full release, which is a cool little bonus. It is disgustingly heavy in all the best ways, the dirty guitar tone, low riffs and awesome screams being so good. And yet, we still have some catchy clean, melodic parts in both songs too. They really are the best of both worlds. Also, given that it’s only two songs, they are both clearly highlights and both will certainly be making our playlist! If you’re into the metalcore stuff at all, I cannot recommend this enough, and even if not, it’s heavy enough to keep most metalheads loving it. As a follow-up to his 2022 EP, it’s awesome, and I look forward to hearing where he goes with Rottweiler Records. Christopher Adam has the potential to be a massive name in the metal scene, if these tracks are anything to go by. It’s another solid 9/10!

In terms of where Christopher is headed with Rottweiler, rumours has it we’re getting another EP soon and then an album by the end of the year. That has made this writer very happy and excited, and I shall certainly be reviewing them all!

Charles Wesley Godwin: Lonely Mountain Town

Another long-ass country EP of seven songs spanning nearly 30-minutes, it’s a fantastic release whatever it is. Charles has garnered a pretty big fanbase over the last few years because of his old-school country-folk sound, his hauntingly beautiful voice and his fantastic lyric writing, and all of that is on full display here! The title track opens the EP and sets the tone perfectly. Then you have tracks like single ‘It’s the Little Things’, ‘It’s Her Move’ and the truly phenomenal ‘When I’m Gone’ that are all huge highlights. Every song on this is incredible though, honestly. It gives me Zach Bryan vibes with how raw and emotional the writing is, but way more folk in its sound. There’s a lot of this old-school sound making a resurgence in country at the minute, but this is one of the best artists I’ve heard do it. It’s a solid 8.5/10!

Craig Morgan: American Soundtrack

The last offering of the week is another country one, but at least it’s sub-20-minutes so makes me feel a little less agro about it. I’d also never heard of the guy before but damn, this is fucking awesome! It’s got a bit more of a rock edge to it than the other country releases on this list, and his voice feels ripped straight from the mid 2000s sound. It’s Luke Bryan and Randy Houser in the best possible ways! The title track is awesome, as is the Darius Rucker-like ‘Roots’ and the beautiful (if religious) ballad ‘God’s Problems’. And that’s just the first half! The other three songs are just as amazing, I assure you. Craig has another huge fan in me as this is another excellent country EP on a list full of them! I’ma be listening to this a lot moving forward, and I can’t give it any less than another 10/10. It’s everything I want out of my country music, and it’s the perfect length. I’d recommend this to anyone!

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Confyde and Sidewinder: EPs Galore!

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Another few amazing EPs for us to check out this week, let’s dive straight in!

Confyde: A Coward’s Stitches

I’ve loved this quirky metal band for a while now, and that love absolutely carries on through to this EP! The obvious System of a Down influence is there, especially with Martin singing in a tribute to them for a while, but there’s also plenty of Mr Bungle elements to it with just how experimental it all is. The opener/title track alone jumps about all over the place, but in the best possible way! I would say it’s a big highlight of the release, but honestly the other two tracks are just as excellent as this one! There’s just a hint of his old band, Emperor Chung, running through it all which I absolutely love too, as I miss that band a lot! The lyrics throughout are great as well, with the almost ballad-like ‘Once Broken’ being a particular highlight in that regard. Then you have the Ren-esque, proggy and emotional ‘Hxppy Nxw Yxxr’ to cap things off perfectly.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not going to be for everyone. However, I loved it, and if you’re into the more experimental side of modern metal, I can guarantee you will too! I’ll certainly be listening to this again a fair bit over the next few weeks, and it gets a solid 8.5/10 from me!

Sidewinder: March of the Eternal Heretic

This was described to me as “bruising thrash/hardcore”, which sounds like exactly what I need in 2025. After listening to it, that was confirmed to be correct; I loved this! It’s a 15-minute full-frontal assault of fast, heavy metal, and it was excellently written, performed and mixed. For the second time on this list, it’s impossible to pick out highlights, it’s all as good as each other. It honestly feels like the natural evolution of thrash in general, and I’m all for bands sounding like this in the genre moving forward! I was so close to pitting in my own kitchen. It again won’t be for everyone, but if you’re to the quick, heavy, angry stuff, I cannot recommend this enough. I am desperate to see this live, and given that they’re near Leeds hopefully I can soon! This gets an easy 9/10!

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Sypha and Corroding Soul: EP’s Galore!

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Jumping back into the EP for a the first time in 2025, we have two incredible metal release for us to sink our teeth into. Let’s do this!

Sypha: Borderland

The modern metal Brits are set to release their debut EP this coming Friday, and the world is in for a treat! We’ve already had two of the three tracks released already, with closer ‘The Afterparty’ being a new addition. It’s just as good as the other two, and that’s saying something! The band certainly wear their inspiration on their sleeves, it having very much a City of Evil-era Avenged feel, but more in line with the more modern metal scene, akin to Phoenix Lake and even South of Salem. All three tracks are incredible in their own right, and all feel pretty individual and unique, yet all fit perfectly together for this release. The plodding, epic opener is incredible, and Alicia’s harsher vocals heading into that breakdown are amazing. Then you have the faster, heavier ‘Limbo’, an idea choice for a single thanks to the catchy chorus, and the awesome, balls-to-the-wall closer.

This is an absolutely amazing release. I cannot recommend it enough to anyone into a more modern metal style, it really does have a bit of everything! The band are clearly insanely talented and excellent songwriters, and it’s easy to see them being a massive name sooner rather than later. If anything, as excellent as this release is, it’s just made me want a full album from them. I need more! However, this easily gets a 9/10 from me!

Corroding Soul: Self-Titled

The third EP from the post black metal project of David Lovejoy is nothing if not an epic affair. I have to admit, I’m very up and down with the genre, but I really liked this. Somehow, it almost felt uplifting; the atmosphere feeling positive and epic despite the insanely heavy vocals and riffing. There was more than a smattering of power and folk metal in there in the instrumentation, which was awesome. I’ve not quite heard anything like it before, and I was intrigued as much as loving it. Just the opening track is enough on its own, but all four songs on this release are pretty fantastic. And while all being pretty similar, they all click together perfectly and form one fantastic release. It’s a little long so could border on album territory, but I feel like even with long tracks, if it’s just four it’s an EP. It certainly won’t be for everyone, but if the genre scares you give this a try, you may be pleasantly surprised! David is an incredibly talented songwriter and player. It’s a solid 8/10 from me!

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Rifftera, Madeline Merlo & Johan Tell: EPs Galore!

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Another collection of great EPs have been released this week. Let’s take a look at them!

Rifftera: Coda

The thrashy melodeath band have returned with their first collection of music since their 2019 album. In the five years of release drought, it’s great to hear they haven’t lost a step at all. This is three incredible tracks, topped off by an amazing early Iron Maiden cover. It’s heavy, fast paced, and packed full of some awesome screams and powerful, catchy cleaner vocals. It reminds me a lot of Before the Dawn, the perfect blend of that and In Flames, with maybe just a sprinkle of early Metallica in the riffing, too. There’s even some metalcore elements in there too, that I love. And of course, the soloing is a massive highlight throughout. The two singles are of course awesome, but the opening track is also great, setting the tone to the release perfectly. Meanwhile, anyone that covers the Seventh Son epic ‘Moonchild’ and does it this well immediately has a massive fan in me! This is an awesome little metal release, and I’m hoping it means the band are gearing up for another album and hopefully a trip overseas for a UK show or two! 8/10

Madeline Merlo: ONE HOUSE DOWN (From the Girl Next Door)

The brand new EP of the CCMA female artist of the year nominee for this year, following up her short collection from back in January. It’s the perfect follow-up to that, being a chilled-out, emotion-filled collection of slower mid-2000s country pop. The single and duet with Dustin Lynch is amazing, while tracks like ‘Same Car’ and ‘Good Grief’ are also massive highlights. It’s a real solid collection of songs though, with none being bad and them all fitting together perfectly. I’d recommend this to any fan of country music reading this, and it’s very easy to see why she was nominated for a CCMA! Her vocals fit the music perfectly, and she is clearly a very talented songwriter, having a hand in each of the tracks. I’ll be spinning this a lot moving forward, I’m sure, and it gets an easy 9/10 from me!

Johan Tell: Self-Titled

The debut EP of the Swedish rocker is a fun collection of four awesome tracks. It has a real old-school feel to it too, giving me everything from Bowie to The Police. All four tracks are amazing, but I think ‘Eternity’ is my highlight of the bunch. Plus, the closing ballad is incredible and so beautiful. For anyone into that 70s/80s style of rock, I’d definitely recommend this. He’s a very good songwriter who is going to go far in the industry if he keeps putting out stuff of this quality. It’s an easy 7.5/10 from me!

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Held by Trees, Penny Rich and Forsaken Rite: EPs Galore!

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Another three awesome, very different EPs for us to check out this time around. So, let’s dive right in with them!

Held by Trees: Held by Trees & Martin Smith

This is a damn interesting release. The bands first collaboration with a vocalist and they couldn’t have picked a better fit than Martin. Don’t get me wrong, it’s certainly not going to be for everyone, it being slower, more chilled out prog music. However, from a truly instrumental and writing standpoint, it’s utterly phenomenal. The way the instruments play alongside each other in the opening track is amazing, Martin’s voice almost treated like another instrument alongside them. However, that shouldn’t take away from his great lyrics. But man, the guitar and sax solos were a big highlight of the track. Then you have the equally epic and introspective, albeit slower, ‘Lay Your Troubles Down’, and the shorter ‘Oh, My Love’. The whole thing has such an awesome flow to it, feeling like a combination of U2, Pink Floyd and the Police, yet somehow is arguably more interesting than all three. I cannot get over that Sax work especially in ‘Oh, My Love’. It’s definitely a highlight of the release. The rest of the EP is different versions of these three tracks, which I can honestly take or leave, but the nearly half an hour of these three are amazing, and went by like a flash. Honestly, it gets a solid 8.5/10 from me!

Penny Rich: On and On

We don’t cover anywhere near enough noise-punk on this site, which is probably why when I hear some as good as this, I love it even more! This is four tracks of attitude-drenched indie-punk, and I enjoyed every number of it. The closest thing I can think to compare it to is IDLES, but even then it has a bit more grit and intrigue to it. And look no further for proof of that then the opening single, ‘Fundamentals’. It incapsulates everything the band are about in one four-and-a-half minute package, and is a massive highlight of the release. However, all four tracks are great, and if you like this sort of music you’ll get plenty of enjoyment out of the EP. The band are all clearly insanely talented musicians and writers, and are going to become a huge name in the scene sooner rather than later, I’m sure of it! I’mma be listening to it plenty where I can, though interestingly it is only realised via Bandcamp currently, a service I sadly do not use anywhere near enough. It very much compliments the band’s punk ethos, though! It’s an easy 8/10!

Forsaken Rite: The Forgotten West

The Canadian folk-metallers are back with their first new music since 2017’s full-length The Northern Saga. Touting this as very much a continuation to that release, I clearly need to go back and check that album out as this EP is awesome! It takes inspiration from not just folk, but symphonic and even atmospheric black metal too, combining all these sounds together in one powerhouse 22-minute package. The clean, operatic vocals are beautiful, and contrast perfectly with the harsh male growls throughout. And the rest of the band have created an epic, awesome soundscape across all five tracks! It’s super hard to pick highlights, but for me the opening track and ‘Fire Circle’ stood out ever so slightly above the others. As I said though, all are fantastic songs. The band have returned with a vengeance, and if they build on this release and momentum, can easily be pushed high up in the genre pretty soon. For now, this EP gets another easy 8/10

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Russel Dickerson, Forlorn Hope and Worn Out: EPs Galore!

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Another roundup of the EPs from this week sees three awesome releases that you just HAVE to check out. See what we thought of them below!

Russel Dickerson: Bones the EP

The bro-country legend is back with his brand new EP. It follows his Summer Collection of singles, which I’m honestly shocked none made the cut on this. However, I get why they didn’t, and get the theme and name behind the release. While there’s a bit bigger sounds and almost rock at times, this EP is generally a touch slower and more stripped back, more bare BONES… see…

However, while far too short, it was a damn enjoyable EP! I’d already heard the title track, not just on streaming but also him playing it live at The Long Road last week. It’s a fantastic song, both live and on track. However, my favourite is probably ‘Those Nights, These Days’. It has a slight pop-rock edge to it that I can’t help but love, and the chorus is infectiously catchy. Russel’s vocals are effortless great, and his personality somehow shines through in any style of music he records. Sure, it’s pretty chilled out for what we cover here, and for most country music in general, but it’s an enjoyable listen and definitely leaves me wanting another full album from the guy! 8/10

Forlorn Hope: Valour, Pt. 1

This is a really interesting release. It’s obviously power metal, and the comparisons to modern Iron Maiden are also pretty clear. However, the closest band I keep coming back to are the excellent, oft-forgotten Emperor Chung. It’s like more technical, (dare I say) interesting power metal, and I’m all for it! Front the incredible opener to the epic closer and all three insane tracks in between, it’s a perfectly solid release without a bad song on it. It’s a truly phenomenal release that really sets the band apart from others in their scene and on their level. And honestly, it wasn’t nearly long enough, and I’m already impatiently waiting for Pt. 2! 9/10

WORN OUT: LOW

This is an excellent melodic hardcore release. Right from the offset of opener ‘Deeper’, it goes hard and heavy, and doesn’t relent until the EP is over. The riffing is incredible, as is the drumming, and the vocals are packed full of emotion and anger, and screamed perfectly. It’s like the perfect combination of Refused and FEVER333, and I loved every second! Heck, there’s even some Spiritbox/ old-school iwrestledabearonce in some of the screams. And while it’s hard to pick highlights on something so short, especially when every track is amazing, I found myself gravitating towards ‘Lose Sleep’ on subsequent listens. And honestly, with these heavier releases, it almost pays off more for them to be shorter. This is in and out in just over 15-minutes, slapping you across the face and getting out before the sound gets old or grating. It’s a damn fine release that anyone into the heavier side of metal should certainly check out. And damn do I want to see this live immediately! 8/10

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Southern Song: The Amazing New EP From Van Winkle & the Spirits!

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I’d never heard of this Kentucky country band before last week, when they emailed me about the release of this EP. I assume they read my review of Kyle Daniel’s new album, as to my surprise, he did the guitaring for this release! So, I couldn’t not check it out, and am excited to dive in and see what Van Winkle and Co. have to offer!

The Ep’s title track opens things off perfectly, immediately getting off ‘Free Bird’ vibes. The vocals, and the lyrics for that matter, fit perfectly over the top of the instrumentation. The backing vocals and harmonies add so much to the already catchy chorus too, making for a very memorable one! We even get some awesome organ and guitar duelling solos, adding even more Lynyrd Skynyrd vibes to the track. It’s an amazing choice to. Open the EP, showing off exactly what the band are about and their great sound, and it was an excellent choice of a single! It easily makes our playlist!

Having watched this video after, that is most certainly Kyle Daniel!

‘Moses Coletrain’ adds even more blues to the proceedings, a great simple bass and drum line to kick us off, the guitars, vocals and keys keeping it simple over the top. It all builds up to a simple but hugely effective chorus, just a couple of lines but awesome. The whole track has a subdued, slower pace and feel to it, giving off great old-school blues vibes and making for another amazing song.

The pace picks up slightly for ‘Still Out West’, instead leaning heavily into a western inspiration and sound. It tells a great tale, and the instrumentation and backing vocals again add so much to the great vocals. It honestly feels like a celebration of western music in all of the best ways. It’s also a true testament to the band’s talents, that they can play across multiple different styles and do so flawlessly. The band are three for three so far with amazing songs!

The chilled vibes continue through ‘Wrote the Book’, feeling like the slower, more acoustic end of Blackberry Smoke’s catalogue. It feels like every single line of vocals is infectiously catchy, and the guitaring is doing amazing things throughout the entire track. And, of course, the guitar solo is incredible and fits the tone of the track perfectly. Everything about this song is amazing, and is another easily play listed track!

The pace and rock feel pick back up for ‘Find some Peace’, before the closing track ‘Crown’ goes full folk/Americana in all the best ways! Both are two more amazing tracks with their own appeals. However, the latter drew me in more just for how different, interesting and epic it is. Between the strings and the piano and soaring vocals, it honestly gave me goosebumps. It’s such an incredible song, and the perfect choice to close out the release. If you’re a fan of ballads, check this track out, I cannot recommend it enough!

Overall: This is an amazing EP! Considering I’d never heard of the band before they emailed me a couple of weeks ago, they have a huge new fan in me! The fact that they’ve put out something this strong after their debut album five years ago is insane, and shows that the sky is barely even the limit for the band. I’d recommend it to anyone, not just country fans, and will be spinning it a lot in the coming weeks and months! It’s made me desperate for another full length release from the band, but I at least have this and their debut to keep me busy with in the meantime!

The Score: 9/10