Sunshine Coast, Australia artist TOBiAS (Bio Page) soothes the searching soul with melody and mood in the new LP “Behind The Valley.” TOBiAS produced most of the album himself with mixing done by Elliot Heinrich from Pony Records in London.
The voice of TOBiAS is soothing and assured. When he goes soft and low, you pay close attention. This LP is a gift for the month of November, for sitting by a fireplace with warm drink in hand. The amount of contemplation required is purely up to the listener.
“Behind The Valley” might be a perfect soundtrack for a winter weekend away at a cabin. Ribbons of guitar, soulful inflection. Deep but not at the expense of mood. Smooth but not at the expense of melody. Splash in lovely guitar twangs. Layer for effect.
In the YouTube description for the opener, TOBiAS says: “Howling at The Moon” came really from the early stages of meeting my partner and it was one of those songs that wrote itself, I wrote the song and groove and had the whole demo done within an hour or so. I always like songs that come so easily — it doesn’t always happen but when it does its a blessing.”
“On The Shore” is a showstopper at track five. Emma Beau joins on vocals. Something so wonderful should last more than 3:17, but we will take what we can get. Beau also joins in on track three, “Crazy Time.”
“Shore” begins with sparse guitar. “You’re on the shore / You’re waving me in. / We lost control / Before we begin.”
“Tired Of This Fight” sets up a fantastic finish at track nine. Some very nice instrumentation highlights a memorable foray into taking an emotional break.
Perhaps my favorite in a solid set of tunes is the one TOBiAS chooses to say goodbye with. The closing track is “You’ll Be OK.” Sending a former lover off with an understanding that they will be better in the long run.
“Your precious time is running out / All of our baggage is wearing us down” the lyrics declare. A time for goodbyes looping directly back to the moment of first meeting.
It’s a long weekend. Time to hit “replay” and go again.
Repeat listens bear further rewards. What arrives as a guitar-driven, soulful look at relationships deepens just like the voice of TOBiAS as you listen anew. It’s folk. It’s lounge. It lives in the country but visits the city. It’s Behind The Valley, but centered in the heart.
LINK: https://linktr.ee/tobiasmusicofficial
UNCLE EARS is a music blog written by David Falk. davidrfalk@gmail.com David was born in 1962 and gravitates towards melodies, adventure, unsigned artists, fresh discoveries. He trusts his ear to know what it likes and loves sharing what he finds. He lives near Seattle, WA, USA.
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