2020 has thrown a lot of curveballs in our direction, but the biggest among them for music fans might be the lack of concerts and, thus, connectivity with our favorite artists and bands. Despite the narrative surrounding the past year being largely steeped in darkness and gloom, Scythian aren’t letting anything stop them on their mission to brighten up 2020 before it all comes to an end with the release of their new album Roots & Stones, a brilliant dive into the world of Americana as viewed through the lens of contemporary rock.

WEBSITE: https://www.scythianmusic.com/

Right from the moment we get into the first three songs – “Broken String,” “Sail Away Johnny” and “Duffy’s Cut” – it’s clear that there’s a lot riding on this performance for Scythian. There’s so much passion, so much unchecked aggression finding its way into even the calmest of tracks here that by the time we get into the second half of the LP it’s as though we’ve already listened to an entire double album (in a good way, mind you). This band didn’t have anything left to prove prior to making this record, but honestly, you’d never know that just from taking a peek at any of the songs here.

Similarly to past efforts, Roots & Stones features a string-powered framework that rarely requires a lot of indulgence from its vocalists or the other contributing components of the instrumentation. That being the case, I would say some tracks, such as “Je Suis Coureur Des Bois” and “Best Friend Song” for example, feel almost symphonic in their construction of a brooding narrative amidst mighty melodic fireworks – all of which are being brought to life using raw instruments and no software-generated sampling. Grooves do a lot to define the story of “Fire in My Heart” and “Virginia,” while the absence thereof in “Men of the North” and “The Bruce” does a lot to colorize the emotion in their verses. I would have started off the tracklist with “Sweet Maryanne” over “Broken String,” but other than that there really isn’t much I would change about the mechanics or the flow of this record. Truthfully, I think Scythian raised the bar for themselves and the scene they’ve been doing so much for in the last fifteen years by dropping this sophisticated affair.

APPLE MUSIC: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/scythian/216159366?ign-gact=3&ls=1

Appealing to both folk and rock fans who have an ear for the more intriguing listens on the independent end of the pop spectrum, Scythian’s Roots & Stones is a compelling LP and that doesn’t ask a whole lot out of its audience in exchange for a wealth of lyrical and tonal treasures. Though they’ve already got two live albums in their discography, I wouldn’t mind hearing the band take on a live version of this record at some point if for no other reason than to demonstrate the variety of ways it can be presented to the audience. They’re getting a lot off of their chests creatively here, and for a band like this one, that’s essential to keeping their persona alive.

John McCall