Review: Vintage Trouble ‘Heavy Hymnal’

Review: Vintage Trouble ‘Heavy Hymnal’

By Mike O’Cull

Hollywood-based blues/funk/rock wrecking crew Vintage Trouble continues to flex and impress on the group’s new release Heavy Hymnal.

The record, Vintage Trouble’s third effort, comes out June 23rd, 2023 on the Cooking Vinyl label and finds the band putting down a more textured and sophisticated sound than ever before. Producer Chris Seefried helped VT track this new material remotely during the Covid pandemic and each band member worked from their home studio. This led to a more layered, more dramatic song cycle that displays much artistic growth without compromising the fire and soul that Vintage Trouble has long used to build their enviable career. Lyrically, Heavy Hymnal speaks on the state of the current world and to the way people treat each other in the modern era. Los Angeles jazz and soul diva Lady Blackbird guests on one tune and adds her magic to the proceedings.

Vintage Trouble is an absolutely explosive band made up of lead vocalist Ty Taylor, guitarist Nalle Colt, bassist Rick Barrio Dill, and drummer Richard Danielson. The group came together in 2010 and first gained flight after an epic performance on Later with Jools Holland. They’ve toured with major acts including the Rolling Stones, AC/DC, The Who, Bon Jovi, Dave Matthews, Brian May, Gov’t Mule, Paloma Faith, and Lenny Kravitz and rocked crucial festivals like Coachella, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, Rock in Rio, Byron Bay Blues Festival, Bonnaroo, and Life is Beautiful from the main stage. Additionally, VT has been on star-making television shows David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Craig Ferguson, Jimmy Kimmel, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. They’re one of the most impressive groups of our present moment and have a virtually unlimited future in front of them.

Heavy Hymnal goes hard right from the high-octane opening track “Who I Am.” It’s a swift and speedy statement of personal identity set to a cutting, snare-driven groove. Vocalist Ty Taylor immediately dominates the landscape, spitting lines and lyrics that tell his story in bold strokes. Rick Barrio Dill’s bass playing puts the muscle behind the beat and his presence is unmistakable. Horns and hot guitars fill out the unique arrangement and make the song a head-turner.

“You Already Know” delivers more soulful, blues-informed rock and roll with the power to push a stadium crowd into motion. Taylor’s voice and overall vibe are as good as it gets and you just can’t take your ears off of him. Guitar slinger Nalle Colt puts the grit and gasoline into this one and does himself proud on his solo. These first two songs hit like a locomotive and will assert Vintage Trouble’s’s dominance anywhere they get played.

“Shinin'”

 
The single “Not The One” blends a modern R&B verse with an old-school soul chorus and speaks a whole lot of truth to a badly-behaved, repentant love interest. It takes a load of internal fortitude to lay this kind of straight talk on someone you loved hard but can no longer be around but Ty handles it like a boss. The band wraps its sound around his voice and gives him the wide-open space he needs to handle the situation like a person with boundaries, self-respect, and a great deal of musicality. In many ways, this cut is the centerpiece of the album.

Deeper in, there are more highlights to be found. “The Love That Once Lingered” features Lady Blackbird duetting with Taylor and they wring every bit of emotion out of this classic soul ballad. Other better-not-miss tunes include “Alright Alright” and “Repeating History.” Heavy Hymnal is going to be huge for Vintage Trouble. The band has mastered the perfect mix of innovation, tradition, and relevance and it’s going to keep opening big doors for them, as it already has. Highly recommended.

Pre-order Heavy Hymnal HERE