Music review: Bill Toms & Hard Rain – ‘Deep in the Shadows’
The latest release by Pittsburgh’s own Bill Toms and Hard Rain is a palatable collection of rock, soul and blues sustained by raw, organic messages of survival and perseverance.
Continuing to build on the infectious arrangements showcased on 2011’s “Memphis,” Toms emerges from the shadows to deliver nine robust arrangements possessing an uncompromising street savvy. “I Got No Use (For What You’re Selling Me)” opens the album with smooth horns melodically playing host to Toms’ growling Bruce Springsteenesque vocals.
The emotion displayed on songs like “Be Careful What You Wish For,” “I Ain’t Worried” and “Man Who Won the War” showcases a lyrical content that is genuinely poetic and heartfelt. Toms has a crafty way of constructing songs that relate to the common man in almost a spiritual sense.
Possessing the gritty realism of John Hiatt and the soulful rock of the J. Geils Band, “Darkest Side of Town,” “The Air Feels Like Rain (Paris, 1943)” and “Times Ain’t Nothing Like They Used to Be” are a full-bodied testimonial to Toms’ songwriting and storytelling artistry. There is a straightforward honesty in his voice that makes one experience the suffering, understand the struggle, hold dear the small victories and always remain hopeful in the promise of better things to come.
“My road is well traveled/I’ve seen it all before,” reflectively sings Toms, summing up the all-embracing mood of the new material.
“Deep in the Shadows” is a resounding triumph for this Pittsburgh music hero.
Toms and Hard Rain (featuring the Soulville Horns) will perform a CD release show at Pittsburgh’s Club Cafe on March 28.
Clint Rhodes is the Herald-Standard music reviewer. He can be reached at crhodes@heraldstandard.com.