16. April 2025
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Media Review

Van Winkle & the Spirits – Southern Song EP

Florian Buechtingby Florian Buechting

Van Winkle & the Spirits - Southern Song

Van Winkle & the Spirits - Southern Song
4.4

Rating

 4.4/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Very versatile North American / Americana songs
  • Very wide and good instrumentation

August 2024 seems to by a Kyle Daniel month for European country music fans. Not only that the charismatic US-American country-rock artist is playing the Sound of Nashville Festival in Cologne and supporting Southall on their tour (see my tour dates) – there is also a new release. As part of the band Van Winkle & the Spirits, he is sharing the EP Southern Song on 9th August 2024. The band shared the release with me beforehand and I had a listen.

 

Van Winkle & the Spirits – About The Artists

Van Winkle & the Spirits is a Southern Kentucky band project. They have been released a self-titled album in 2019. There was no release thereafter, apart from two singles in 2024, which are now part of the Southern Song EP. Johnny Toms is the lead singer of the band. They have three guitarists, David Erickson, Kyle Daniel and Jason Graumlich. CC Elias is the bassist of the band, while Rachel Crick plays the fiddle. Laneus Franklin is the drummer, but also the keyboarder of the US-American band, which also consists of Valerie Cross as a background singer.

 

Van Winkle & the Spirits – Southern Song – Track by Track

The six song EP lasts 23 minutes.

1. Southern Song

Southern Slong opens with its title track. The song is a melodic track with stronger rock than country vibes. A rather straight, but good listen by the Kentucky band, which especially strikes in the chorus.

2. Moses Coaltrain

Moses Coaltrain begins with a groovy bass solo, before the guitars join in. The song illustrates how Van WInkle & The Spirits profit from their wide instrumentation. Nice work on several instruments and on the vocal side. The groovy character of the song remains and leads to a cool touch.

3. Still Out West

The second song the band shared before the EP release is Still Out West. This song has a rather strong country heart, but also does not deny rock elements. Nice song, which again impresses on the instrumental side.

4. Wrote The Book

Wrote The Book is a bit slower than the songs before and thus also comes with a nice touch of blues. I also really like the guitar work in this 3:11 minute listen.

5. Find Some Place

The rather short Find Some Place has a rather funky song. The song comes with one of the most impressing performances of Johnny Toms on the microphone. However, the band also rather feels like an orchestra – very cool arrangement.

6. Crown

Crown closes the EP. The epic 5:39 minute song has a touch of gospel and feels quite spiritual and emotional. In this track, the fiddle is one of the most present elements as well, even though the instruments play a rather subordinate role.

 

Van Winkle & the Spirits – Southern Song – Track by Track

Here is the EP on Spotify:

 

Van Winkle & the Spirits – Southern Song – Track by Track

There is a song for everyone in this album – Southern Song really contains a nice variety of North American music sounds. From spiritual to uplifting tracks, these six songs by Van Winkle & the Spirits got it all. I really like it.

Favorite Song: Moses Coaltrain

 

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