2013-01-21
K.S. Rhoads is a singer-writer-producer out of Nashville. He is also part of the collective, Ten Out of Tenn, which is a revolving group of Nashville's "less twangy" musicians. (Ten Out of Tenn also consists of Joy Williams, Butterfly Boucher, Kyle Andrews, and Andrew Belle, among others.), K.S. Rhoads' second release,The Wilderness, is an album full of social, political, and even religious commentary. It consists of Mr. Rhoads' occasionally reverb-tinged vocals, a plethora of musical instruments, lovely string sections, and occasional programming/looping, all backed by a vocal choir and topped off with fastidious production. That's just the first half of the disc. By track six ("Chains"), it takes a surprising turn as Mr. Rhoads raps, giving the release a more soulful tone. Another surprise occurs with track 8 ("Prelude"), which is an absolutely lovely orchestral instrumental. Then, it's back to rap with the very cool "Hiyayayaya". That said, The Wilderness is all over the place genre-wise, yet it often returns to it's indie-folk vibe. This works, though, due to its consistent production, lyrics, and instrumentation. This release kept me interested from start to finish. Rebecca RuthRollie Tussing And The Midwest Territory Band
Rollie Tussing And The Midwest Territory Band
Gabrielle Louise
If The Static Clears
LOU RHODES
Beloved One
IVOR THOMAS
Nowhere Else To Go
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Keep the Light Alive: Celebrating the Music of Lowen and Navarro
Rachel Harrington
City of Refuge
The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the individual volunteers that submitted the article and do not necessarily reflect the views of WYCE or GRCMC; nor its staff, donors, or affiliates.