Raymond Revel - The Living Room
Raymond Revel is a singer-songwriter originally from Burbank, California. We have previously covered Revel’s single, “Running from Reality” with its well-polished dreamy soundscape and we were hungry for more music from this talented artist. Today we are pleased to share our thoughts on The Living Room, Raymond Revel’s latest album, which features a more stripped down approach than much of his previous material.
The Living Room begins with “I Met A Voice”, a splendid piano-driven song. The track features almost a folksy nature during the verses though the chorus features a more contemporary melody. “I Met A Voice” leads the album off well and, quite importantly, introduces us to the raw, stripped down and honest approach that Raymond Revel takes on the entirety of The Living Room. Following in the second slot is “Something Good”, which calls into question why we search for bad things in life and not the good - and that good is always around the corner. At points during the verses, Revel uses the piano melody to match his vocals and this melodic choice is executed brilliantly, making this song memorable. “Counting Clouds” is up next and is also the shortest song from The Living Room. Throughout this one, we are treated to some ethereal vibes, truly giving the feeling of floating in the clouds. These first three songs showcase Raymond Revel’s stripped down and purely honest approach on the album, teasing things yet to come.
The fourth song from The Living Room is “Walls” and from the song’s first piano notes, I found myself drawn in by its wonderful melody. I found the lyrics in this song very relatable as Revel sings about building walls as a defense mechanism against the bad things in life, how these walls are holding him back and how he needs to make sure he tears them down. “Walls” is perhaps my favorite track from the entire album and it is extremely powerful. “Mr. Shadow” follows with an piano sound. Revel treats us to his adventures with his shadow and how happy he is to have a friend accompany him throughout his daily adventures. I enjoyed the approach taken in this song as usually shadows are played as dreary or dark but Revel is genuinely happy to not be along thanks to his shadow. Sixth is “Sirena” which ended up being the song I listened to the most during this review. Revel takes us through his relationship with Sirena in a very storytelling way which helps it be one of the most memorable tracks from the album.
“Mason” is the seventh and penultimate track from The Living Room and is another song that features a storytelling style as Revel is speaking to Mason through his lyrics. I found this tune to be encouraging as Revel observes Mason living his life, speaks about the positive things going on around him and speaks to Mason in a kind way. This song feels like it was written for someone and has a very real feel to it. “Dear Future Me” closes out The Living Room and serves as a marvelous album finisher. Throughout this track, Revel is singing to his future self at the ages of 33, 63 and 93, looking back on all he accomplished in his life. The line “please don’t forget the magic that these moments made for you” from early in the track stood out to me as, sometimes, the magic really is lost in memory and Revel is encouraging himself to remember, to live for a moment in those memories again. It is wonderful to hear how far Raymond Revel knows he will go in his life and how he is leaving this song as a memory for his future self to listen back to down the line.
Overall, The Living Room is a pleasant listening experience from front to back, showcasing Raymond Revel’s excellent vocal talent and piano chops. Throughout this album, Revel shows us that having dozens of layers of sound is not always what makes a song great and that sometimes the simple things in music are the most touching; Revel’s honest and straightforward approach brings an undeniable feeling of authenticity that makes these eight songs easy to enjoy. Be sure to keep up with Raymond Revel through his website, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and you can find his music on YouTube and Spotify. We shared a few spotlight tracks throughout the review and we have The Living Room embedded below for your listening pleasure! Give it a listen from front to back and you are sure to find some real enjoyment!
