They’re a bit of a two-faced bunch, The 2:19. I mean this in the nicest possible way, you understand.
See, on the one hand the Belfast band are partial to knocking out some rasping, rocking blues. But on the other, they like to pursue some different rootsy avenues. More importantly though, they’re pretty darned good either way.
They open Keep My Will Strong with a trio of bluesy outings. ‘One Thing I Figured’ is a grinding blues stomp, augmented by big waves of organ from guest keys man John McCullough. It’s a well-constructed affair, with a ducking and diving slide solo from Paul Wilkinson, supplemented by blasts of harp from Chris Chalmers, who delivers the cryptic lyric with his customary rich
vocal. They follow that with the punchy shuffle of ‘Dead Dogs & Bee Suits’, driven along crisply by Monty Sneddon's drums, with an emphatic chorus and wailing slide and harp sparring with each other. Then ‘Gape Row’ is brighter – ironically given that the downbeat lyrics centre on the demolition of an old street – and strewn with guitar licks, until they dial it down for a bridge that reflects on a celebrated local woman of dubious means.
‘Say Yeah’ signals a shift in tone, with some short and sweet Motown-ish stylings full of chiming piano, tambourine rattling, grooving bass from Marty Young, and sweet backing vocals courtesy of Suzy Coyle, while Chalmers has fun rasping out the “I wanna hear you say yeah” refrain. And later they lay back into a more relaxed soul vibe on ‘Stepping Stone’, with understated bass meandering over the steady beat, and dustings of chocolate box piano here and there.
In between they show adventurous restraint with the slower ‘Go Blind’, a folk-soul-blues kinda thing that leads with delicate acoustic picking, soon joined by equally delicate piano. Chalmers delivers a vocal full of feeling on lines like “These eyes of yours could start world wars, and the smile could end them all,” embellished by some hushed harmonies, before they ramp things up into more anthemic mode, crystallising in an evocative, buzzing solo from Wilkinson.
They get subtler still on ‘Hawthorn Black’, a lovely tune with shades of Del Amitri – albeit without the bitterness Justin Currie might bring to proceedings. With brushed drums, prickling acoustic guitar, and softly reflective vocal, it has a vaguely Celtic-soul air about it, and calling it a lovely little tune feels like selling it short.
The Celtic vibe takes a different turn on ‘Who Do They Think They Are’, with a guitar harmony motif from Wilkinson and his six string buddy Ady Young, while Chalmers delivers a smooth but disputatious vocal. But the guitars really return to the fray on ‘The Ring’, a slow-paced tramp with a spiky, distorted riff to go with the downright gravelly, Tom-Waits-with-a-hangover vocal from drummer Monty Sneddon, reinforced by blasts of harp and a bristling, wiry guitar solo.
‘My Oh My’ is strutting R’n’B locked into a snapping snare drum, with a ‘Spirit In The Sky’-adjacent riff, with squalls of slide and harp adding to the grit all the way to a jangling, swinging outro. Then they lighten up with some Faces-like good-time boogie on ‘Go Home’, embodying the “It’s three in the morning, I just wanna go home” sentiments in ramshackle bar band style, right down to Wilkinson’s ringing Chuck Berry style solo.
Having got that off their chest, the title track inhabits a soulful gospel vibe. Sweeps of church-like organ and strokes of piano from McCullough are the principal backdrop for Chalmers’ pleading, hoarse vocal, robustly complemented by some testifying from Suzy Coyle and piercing Wilkinson guitar. Then they ease through the exit door with the rippling guitar and low key but sunny-side-up mood of ‘Let It Slide’.
With Keep My Will Strong The 2:19 have served up a smörgãsbord of well executed, warm and well balanced, rootsy flavours – and an impressive follow-up to their award-nominated 2023 album We Will Get Through This.
Keep My Will Strong is released on 27 January.
See, on the one hand the Belfast band are partial to knocking out some rasping, rocking blues. But on the other, they like to pursue some different rootsy avenues. More importantly though, they’re pretty darned good either way.
They open Keep My Will Strong with a trio of bluesy outings. ‘One Thing I Figured’ is a grinding blues stomp, augmented by big waves of organ from guest keys man John McCullough. It’s a well-constructed affair, with a ducking and diving slide solo from Paul Wilkinson, supplemented by blasts of harp from Chris Chalmers, who delivers the cryptic lyric with his customary rich
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| The 2:19 find a suitable venue to get a round in |
‘Say Yeah’ signals a shift in tone, with some short and sweet Motown-ish stylings full of chiming piano, tambourine rattling, grooving bass from Marty Young, and sweet backing vocals courtesy of Suzy Coyle, while Chalmers has fun rasping out the “I wanna hear you say yeah” refrain. And later they lay back into a more relaxed soul vibe on ‘Stepping Stone’, with understated bass meandering over the steady beat, and dustings of chocolate box piano here and there.
In between they show adventurous restraint with the slower ‘Go Blind’, a folk-soul-blues kinda thing that leads with delicate acoustic picking, soon joined by equally delicate piano. Chalmers delivers a vocal full of feeling on lines like “These eyes of yours could start world wars, and the smile could end them all,” embellished by some hushed harmonies, before they ramp things up into more anthemic mode, crystallising in an evocative, buzzing solo from Wilkinson.
They get subtler still on ‘Hawthorn Black’, a lovely tune with shades of Del Amitri – albeit without the bitterness Justin Currie might bring to proceedings. With brushed drums, prickling acoustic guitar, and softly reflective vocal, it has a vaguely Celtic-soul air about it, and calling it a lovely little tune feels like selling it short.
The Celtic vibe takes a different turn on ‘Who Do They Think They Are’, with a guitar harmony motif from Wilkinson and his six string buddy Ady Young, while Chalmers delivers a smooth but disputatious vocal. But the guitars really return to the fray on ‘The Ring’, a slow-paced tramp with a spiky, distorted riff to go with the downright gravelly, Tom-Waits-with-a-hangover vocal from drummer Monty Sneddon, reinforced by blasts of harp and a bristling, wiry guitar solo.
‘My Oh My’ is strutting R’n’B locked into a snapping snare drum, with a ‘Spirit In The Sky’-adjacent riff, with squalls of slide and harp adding to the grit all the way to a jangling, swinging outro. Then they lighten up with some Faces-like good-time boogie on ‘Go Home’, embodying the “It’s three in the morning, I just wanna go home” sentiments in ramshackle bar band style, right down to Wilkinson’s ringing Chuck Berry style solo.
Having got that off their chest, the title track inhabits a soulful gospel vibe. Sweeps of church-like organ and strokes of piano from McCullough are the principal backdrop for Chalmers’ pleading, hoarse vocal, robustly complemented by some testifying from Suzy Coyle and piercing Wilkinson guitar. Then they ease through the exit door with the rippling guitar and low key but sunny-side-up mood of ‘Let It Slide’.
With Keep My Will Strong The 2:19 have served up a smörgãsbord of well executed, warm and well balanced, rootsy flavours – and an impressive follow-up to their award-nominated 2023 album We Will Get Through This.
Keep My Will Strong is released on 27 January.
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