Canadian country artist Owen Riegling has quickly established himself as one of the genre’s most compelling emerging voices, blending small-town roots with a modern, road-worn perspective. Since winning the Boots & Hearts Emerging Artist Competition in 2022, Riegling has built steady momentum with his Platinum-certified hit ‘Old Dirt Roads,' the release of ‘Bruce County (From The Beginning),' and a relentless touring schedule that has seen him share stages with artists like Dierks Bentley and Parker McCollum. Known for his authenticity and connection with fans, his songwriting has evolved in real time, shaped by life on the road and a willingness to lean into personal growth.
That evolution comes into sharp focus on his sophomore album ‘In The Feeling,' produced in Nashville by Oscar Charles. Written alongside some of the city’s top hitmakers — including Luke Laird, Jonathan Singleton and Jimi Bell — the 12-track project captures a transformative period marked by constant travel, major life changes and a deepening sense of identity. Described by Riegling as a “coming-of-age” concept album and a “song-driven road trip with no end in sight,” ‘In The Feeling' reflects an artist stepping into his own, writing with clarity, confidence and a renewed sense of purpose.
From the very first beat, ‘In The Feeling' wastes no time establishing its sense of urgency. ‘Phone Call From Home' bursts open with a thumping, almost Bruce Springsteen-esque drive, as Owen Riegling leans into that restless, road-worn energy, even name-checking Springsteen himself. “I’ll sleep when I’m dead,” he declares, capturing the push-and-pull of life in motion. The track builds into something bigger and louder as it unfolds, with soaring guitars and pounding drums giving the final stretch a kind of The Killers-meets-Springsteen urgency that feels tailor-made for live stages.
That same pulse carries into ‘Rest Of My,' where youthful passion replaces physical distance. With lines like “Hold me like it’s now or never,” Riegling channels a night of reckless romance, backed by driving drums and electric guitars that echo the energy of Keith Urban’s more rock-leaning moments. There’s even a subtle nod to ‘Thunder Road' in the imagery of “screen doors creaking,” reinforcing the album’s early fixation on movement, escape and chasing something just out of reach.
‘Taillight This Town' shifts the tone, introducing a darker, more introspective edge. Opening with a post-grunge acoustic feel, it leans into 90s textures as Riegling asks, “why don’t we leave right now?” — referencing Jack Kerouac and the romanticism of the open road. That restlessness continues into ‘Miles Away,' a more stripped-back, mid-tempo moment where he sings, “As long as there is air in these lungs and air in these tyres / We’ll be chasing blue skies.” It’s a simple but effective mission statement — youthful, optimistic and rooted in possibility.
The emotional core of the record begins to surface with ‘Same Blood,' a standout that blends 90s country-rock textures with a deeply personal narrative. “We ain’t kids no more… out searching for something we can’t afford,” he sings, addressing his relationship with his brother with both nostalgia and resolve. That campfire intimacy carries into ‘Born Again,' where the sonic palette shifts toward a more rural, folk-leaning sound reminiscent of Sam Barber. Mandolins, harmonicas and acoustic textures frame one of the album’s most tender lines: “Until the world goes dark… I’ll still be loving you when we’re born again.”
Then comes ‘Going Missing,' a sharp left turn into swampy, southern gothic territory. With its heavy low end and hypnotic groove, it’s the album’s most sonically adventurous moment. “I’m going missing like dogs when the gate’s left open,” Riegling sings, as wailing harmonica and brooding instrumentation create a sense of escape and longing for solitude tinged with just a hint of darkness. That intensity gives way to ‘Love Hate Love,' which swings the pendulum back toward heartland rock. “Just like George and Tammy when they drank too much,” he sings, referencing George Jones and Tammy Wynette, capturing the chaos of a relationship that burns hot but refuses to fade as that sense of youthful passion and naivety rears it's head once again.
The album’s final stretch leans into a more grounded, reflective tone. ‘Mailbox' paints a vivid picture of small-town life, anchored by the image of a bent-up mailbox as a symbol of staying put — “I’m too old to leave,” he admits. ‘Last Thing On My Mind' follows as a softer, acoustic-driven moment of reassurance, blending folk and country in a way that nods to Mumford & Sons while still feeling rooted in Nashville. The title track, ‘In The Feeling,' ties the themes together — distance, longing and the pull of home — as Riegling sings, “Save a spot for me in the feeling… I can’t exist on dreams alone.” Like lettering through a stick of rock, those themes of love, distance, dislocation and longing run wild through this album, unbound and unfettered. Rielging is a guy caught between many stools, juggling all his balls in the air at once and grabbing anything to stop them from crashing to the ground.
Closing track ‘Anything But Me' brings everything into focus. Stripped back and tinged with those 90s grunge textures, it finds Riegling reflecting on insecurity and identity — “some days I’d have given everything to be anything but me.” It’s raw and introspective, with a quiet guitar line underscoring the vulnerability. But as the song unfolds, so does a sense of resolution. What begins as doubt ends in acceptance, closing the album on a note of hard-earned self-awareness – closing the door on this chapter of his life with clarity and hope.
There’s a lot happening across ‘In The Feeling' — sonically and emotionally — but it never feels scattered. Instead, it plays like a carefully sequenced journey: from the restless, Springsteen-inspired urgency of the opening tracks, through a darker, grunge-tinged middle, into a more grounded, reflective final act shaped by folk and modern country influences. For a sophomore album, it’s remarkably cohesive and assured. Riegling doesn’t just explore different sounds — he ties them together with a clear narrative voice, creating a record that feels both expansive and yet deeply personal at the same time. It's a heartland rock album in the same vein as Springsteen, The Killers, Sam Barber and Waylon Wyatt are all capable of doing – the skilful way Riegling straddles all those artists, the old and the new, is testament to what he has achieved here and what he is capable of going to to achieve in the albums to come.
Tracklist: 1. Phone Call From Home 2. Rest Of My 3. Taillight This Town 4. Miles Away 5. Same Blood 6. Born Again 7. Going Missing 8. Love Hate Love 9. Mailbox 10. Last Thing On My Mind 11. In The Feeling 12. Anything But Me Release Date: April 17th Record label: Universal Music Canada/Big Loud Buy ‘In the Feeling' right here.
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