The Reveal rocks, laying down confident jams with some swagger to them. The guys are workin’ it on the new release Do You Know?
Passages on the project move from mildly head-nodding to captivatingly footstomping.
The rock-blues-garage-funk-jam-dance-grunge band, formerly known as No Name Blues, combined a few new tunes with remasters of some previous work the band released under its old moniker and leads the listener on quite a journey during the release’s 36 minutes, but leaves some fans still wanting more even after the 11 tracks are over.
It’s rock ’n’ roll right up my alley. The Reveal seems comfortable letting a fairly simple groove ride for a little while and letting the listener get caught up in the jam, and it rocks.
The distorted vocals and at-times-heavily effected guitar sounds can set it apart from traditional blues-rock and bring a bit of an experimental quality.
“Brookshire” displays just a supremely groovy call-and-answer guitar portion. This slamming, brief instrumental lets the guitars—and drums—do the talking.
At most points, Do You Know? isn’t incredibly complex, but it should get the rock ’n’ roll fans rockin’. The guys don’t overplay and are fine with letting a segment or note hang just for a little while and giving the music some space to breathe.
The ridiculously funky “Tick Tock” has one such passage where The Reveal shows some restraint and lets the listener hang for a moment before the groove hits, paired with an extremely overdriven bass guitar solo.
The band’s got work to do but they’re down to clown, to paraphrase “Tick Tock.”
Members of the trio—Dustin McKee on bass and vocals, Kirk Morrow Jr. on drums and Josh Norfleet on guitar—three young men from Kokomo, Indiana, now based in Tennessee, all seem to have some well-rounded musical backgrounds contributing to the eclectic sound of The Reveal. McKee spent time as a drum line instructor; the family of Norfleet schooled him on bluegrass music before he gravitated toward rock; Morrow, who also has experience on acoustic guitar and vocals, grew up with his dad playing drums.
“She’s Bad” should get some feet stomping; midway through the first verse of “Work,” The Reveal introduces a catchy little guitar riff used throughout the song.
The instrumental of “Lost at Sea” takes things into a different, deeper realm, almost drifting into some heavy metal territory.
S.O.S. I’m in Distress!
Something about the more wacky and lighthearted “$3 Blues” doesn’t quite seem to fit the theme of the album. Maybe this is one of the older ones. In its own right it’s still a fun “Luther played the boogie-woogie” kind of ditty that tells of an individual spending his $3 on a Swisher Sweet, sweet tea lemonade and a bar of chocolate.
Really, some of the lyrics throughout can be a little silly and clichéd—Rock your body with me; I don’t wanna work no more; She’s so bad I’m so confused; I’m so broke.
But the music is seriously groovy, and has just enough experimental elements to give The Reveal some separation from a wealth of other groups and keep things fresh.
Find Do You Know? on Spotify and other streaming services.
