Red Matter - Northbound Train
Red Matter is a genre-blending jam band. With an eclectic musical style and a sound - and mentality - built for the road, this band has made nearly two hundred and fifty stops on tour, delighting their audiences along the way. Today we are excited to share our thoughts on Red Matter’s ten-track album, Northbound Train!
Northbound Train kicks off with “Light of the Moon”, which was also the group’s debut single. A funk-y rhythmic piece of art, this track sets up the rest of the album brilliantly and is catchy in a way that will ensure you come back to it time and again. Second is “Hole In My Heart” an emotive and danceable song that will get you moving. The guitar solo in this one stood as a high spot, both for the song and album as a whole, and was a personal favorite moment on the album for me. “Jokers Wild” follows and slows things down a bit. From the cool piano intro to the vocal explosion in the latter quarter of the track, this song takes you on a massively appealing musical adventure.
Fourth from Northbound Train is the title track, “Northbound Train”. Capturing the energy of a train in motion, this song feels like a mission statement from Red Matter with its massively jam-y (and massively enjoyable) nature. Up next is “Jealous Man”, another rhythmic masterpiece with some excellent syncopation featured within the percussion. For me, the guitar and bass drive this track home and both parts are absolute standouts. “Not A Soul Around” is brimming with melody and felt to me like a radio throwback or perhaps even the featured song from a movie. The band really displays some showmanship in this song across its layered instrumental and brilliant vocal harmonies; this track is my personal favorite from the album and is the one I come back to the most!
“Burn Out Bright” is the longest song from Northbound Train, coming in at eleven minutes and nineteen seconds. There are a lot of mixed emotions and powerful moments mixed into this jazzy piece; although the backing instrumental is quite subdued for most of the song, the guitar work again stands out, burning brightly. “Just Shine” follows and it has a certain swagger to it that is undeniable. The saxophone solo, call and response vocals and great harmonies make this song a real heavy-hitter. “Cool My Bones” is the penultimate song from the album and it has a cool, breezy kind of nature that fits its title perfectly. This one is not as jam-y as the rest of the album but it is a fun little change-up that I enjoyed immensely. “Huddled Masses” closes out the album on a phenomenal note, capturing the essence a great album-ender. I love how much heart Red Matter shows in this song, something that shines true especially in the vocals.
You can get a real taste of the unstoppable force that is Red Matter from Northbound Train and I think you all will absolutely love this amazing, jam-filled album. You can keep up with Red Matter through their website and we have the entirety of Northbound Train embedded below via Spotify! Tour dates for Red Matter are below the Spotify Player as well!
See Red Matter:
MAY 20 at the MONTAUK MUSIC FESTIVAL
MAY 27 at PARK CITY MUSIC HALL
JUN 2 at TRIAD THEATER
AUG 27 at JONES BEACH BANDSHELL
SEP 22 at the NEWTOWN ARTS FESTIVAL
