The gravel-vocal, country-rock sound of Kentucky native Kyle Daniel will crack open your music listening device to pour heart, soul and honesty into your ears, with the ‘Following The Rain’ EP.
The five-tracks will grab hold of you, from the acapella/choir introduction on ‘Runnin’ From Me’, with the lyrics, “took a long time to see/thought I was runnin’ from the heart of the problem/but I was just runnin’ from me.” Then a driving, bluesy piano and electric guitar beat – and THOSE VOCALS – kick in; “I kept thinking I was born to lose/they were all raised to win/so I went along kept doing wrong/just to prove them all right again.”
Next up is ‘Everybody’s Talkin’’, an arrow-direct reminder of society’s problems today, “talk about dying, talk about religion/ talk about the way that I oughta be living/ calling it peace but it feels like war/ and I don’t really think I wanna hear any more…words aren’t worth a dime, it’s time to start walking”, bookended with a John Osborne kind of electric to echo the epiphany.
The sound switches from electric to a gentle acoustic, on ‘Following The Rain’, amplifying Daniel’s cinnamon-grits voice on the poignant hook “just another dark cloud hanging over my head/goes away for a moment and comes back again/nothing ever changes in the middle of a hurricane/that’s why I’m following the rain”.
So far, Kyle Daniel has achieved more, musically and lyrically, in just three songs than some singers manage in a full album. The two strongest songs of the ‘Following The Rain’ EP are still on the way.
‘Me & Me Old Man’ has that instant recognition and legacy status for everyone of a certain experience, “He showed me wrong from right, don’t back down from a fight/‘cause a real dream never needs a backup plan/we both built the common ground where I still stand/and I pray that he’s still proud of who I am.”
Final track ‘Hollerin’ Hills’ weaves traditional country storytelling with bleak 21st Century life as Daniel’s earnest vocals form a lament of the disappearing jobs in a holler community and a train carrying a million dollars. The musical backdrop is an acoustic guitar that means business.
Kyle Daniel’s music is perfect for fans of Chris Stapleton, Steve Earle, Brent Cobb, Kip Moore and Springsteen. Hell, any fan of honest-to-good-time music. Catch Kyle in the UK at The Long Road Festival in August. Until then, you have an outstanding back catalogue of music to work with, starting with the self-titled Kyle Daniel EP, released in 2018.
Track listing: 1. Runnin’ From Me 2. Everybody’s Talkin’ 3. Following The Rain 4. Me & My Old Man 5. Hollerin’ Hills Record label: Groovin’ Buddha Music Release Date: 10th June 2022 Buy ‘Following The Rain’ now
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