Over The Rhine - Love and Revelation, album review

Over the Rhine are one of the people who have made a success out of crowd funding. Using their own web portal and a fiercely loyal fanbase they have used it to make independent musical choices that have resulted in some of the best music of their career.

Their last two albums were produced by Joe Henry, but this time they have kept it to themselves, and produced an album that reflects on their 30 years as a band. Karin Bergquist and Linford Detweiler have been a couple for most of that time and songs like "Betting On The Muse", inspired by Charles Bukowski which examines the search for life's second act are also meditations on where they find themselves at this time. The first song, “Los Lunas” sets the tone of the album. “The very first words you hear on the project are ‘I cried,'” said Detweiler to Rolling Stone, citing the opening lyric. “When I told my 87-year-old mother about it, she said that sounds like the Psalms.” Seemingly surprised to find themselves still in business after 30 years he also said “We wanted to keep growing as writers and, at the end of the day, that’s the most important business plan for any artist: keep going.”

The highlight of any Over The Rhine album is Karin's singing, there are fewer duets than on the last album "Meet Me At The Edge Of The World" but she sounds better than ever. Linford's presence is felt more in the songwriting this time. It seems that the more personal the lyric the more intense the mood of songs that can feel at first listen sombre but reveal themselves as celebrations of life, longevity and a musical bond that they reinforce with each release. My favourites, "An American in Belfast",ironically wordless, "Let You Down", and "Given Road", but ask me again tomorrow...

Working with a small band on the road in the US, they usually tour as a duo, and have visited the UK twice in the last 18 months. Hopefully the reception for this album in Europe might prompt a wider U.K. tour to match the 7 or 8 dates they generally do in Holland and Germany. As the crowdfunder also included a Linford solo piano album and a set of devotional songs there will be plenty new to hear. A new live album would be good as well.

Available to buy HERE

In a holding pattern

Once again life has taken over and time to write here is at a premium. (Ab)normal service will resume in April, if the world keeps gets any madder I may have nothing else left to do by then. In the meantime here is the news.

Blog favourite Bill Nelson has been interviewed to destruction in the wake of Be-Bop Deluxe reissues. Vintage Rock.com talked to him HERE and Record Collector HERE. You can safely ignore Classic Rock, Prog etc as they think he stopped recording in 1977.


Another favourite Over The Rhine have issued a new album Love And Revelation , and it's their best since Ohio. I'll be back with a review of this soon. In the meantime buy it HERE.


A gig I went to in February was reviewed at Americana UK. Laura Gibson has been bubbling around on my radar for a while without ever getting the attention she deserved. I was initially drawn by the Jolie Holland comparison that comes up regularly. However there are elements of Mazzy Star and similar that are closer reference points. Her album "Goners" is fighting with the OTR disc for space on the iPod at the moment.

The failure and resurrection of HMV, closure of more independent shops and the general expectation that the vinyl revival will save the world were news for a moment recently. Vinyl won't save the world, CD still outsells it. What will save the world is a well run large chain pushing music in all formats that gives the record companies confidence to produce music in all genres, because there is someone who will take in enough stock to let them make money. The closure of Fopp in Bristol is a loss to me, but if it wasn't making money then it had to go.

And finally

I went back for some more of the lucky dips at Missing Records I talked about previously. My daughter was delighted with her Abba & Taylor Swift discs, and I got Dylan at Budokan and Sylvian/Fripp's "The First Day" along with a pile of stuff I have yet to listen to. Why am I telling you about this you will only go and buy discs I could have had...