The Strumbellas Get Into The Spirit

Folksy to the marrow definitively describes Canada's The Strumbellas who know what it's like to get into and stay in the spirit throughout "Spirits" You'd be well served using this number as a solemn send-off for a dearly departed comrade. Not that "Spirits" gets glum in the lay you out flat sense. In fact this octet keeps the flame of lightness admirably lit. Vocalist Simon Ward plays up the endearing country neighbor card to the hilt and, guess what, that makes you want to follow him on his journey, fair or cloudy. Jeremy Drury does a smashing job of letting his drums talk a little, then bringing them back to subdued mood. David Ritter's keyboards lend glitter to what is basically a stripped down affair. The pace matches the mood. We're letting our words fall out deliberately, movingly, so the gravitas burns right through. "I got guns in my head and they won't go" are words that hit you like a ton of bricks. They also let you know that maybe Simon Ward could use a good therapist or three. He's hearing things in an off-putting manner. "Spirits" does have that ghostly pallor about it. The shuffling countenance cannot be denied. This toned down track benefits from how slow it goes because it gives you, the listener, a chance to soak in the details full on. Simon doesn't covet the never ending life, a thought Bon Jovi gave flower to in "It's My Life". Not new poetry in the music realm for sure, but the message bears repeating as often as possible. So much easier not coveting something the universe isn't in position to give you. Good for Simon for telling us his love for being a dreamer is a lifelong proposition. Were that we were all so willing to let the inner child score his fair share of victories. Simon very much lashes out against loneliness and won't spend another night in said state of affairs. The Strumbellas are just the cold brew hoisting associates you'd want wiping the tears of sadness from your eyes. They have the band cohesion thing down pat. When it washes over you as a total package, the results maintain a likable, rooting value off the chain dignity that aims to leave you seeing stars. You'd be cutting this song short shrift if you chalked it up as a past our prime funereal dirge. Make no bones about it, even this storm like impostor does give winks to you that give away its silver lining. The chords don't come gift wrapped in somber minor notes. Simon merely aims to speak his brave truth, no more, no less. You'd be looked upon admirably if you chose to witness "Spirits" as a testament to what healing power there can be if you look close enough. Finality doesn't have to be a solely somber proposition. Deep down we do have the capacity to feel relief for the departed no longer having pain weighing him or her down. That way the wonderful memories rise back to the surface, untainted, unsullied...forever. The video has plenty of funeral imagery to thrust visions of mortality dancing in your head but, by the same token, it's imagery cloaked in fond remembrance as you can tell by the objects placed on the coffin. The Strumbellas seek not to pour salt in open wounds. They seek to, in their own no frills style, plant the seed suggesting all we be well in the end, even if we mortals can't see it clearly from our vantage points. "Spirits" sports its humanity like a badge of honor. That's a badge well earned.