Embers

by Unkle Bob

Track listing: All At Once, Embers, If You Believe, It’s Not Enough, Out Of Style, Brother, Millionaires, Feel The Rain, Lightning

I had a dream we were millionaires, but you didn't even care Melancholic? Harmonious? Deliberate? Impactful? How 'bout all of the above?

Embers is the third album by Unkle Bob, an indie rock quintet out of Edinburgh, Scotland, and the brainchild of singer/songwriter Rick Webster. The band's success seemed imminent as their first two albums gained critical acclaim, and their music made was placed prominently, including in ABC's popular drama, Grey's Anatomy.

But without a spark to keep growing the band's popularity, they split up and went their separate ways...until late 2013. Webster released a crowd-funded EP under the band's moniker that seemed to rekindle fans' interest in Unkle Bob's music.

Then over five days in early 2014, accepting Webster's invitation to record again, new and former bandmates reunited in a remote studio in Wales. The group breathed new life into one older studio demo and eight of Webster's new songs, resulting in the nine tracks comprising Embers.

The advance single, "It's Not Enough," is definitive UK in style, a veritable lovechild of influences along the lines of U2, Coldplay, Travis, and even poppy-yet-solemn hints of Morrissey.

Embers' mood is cool, rainy, and foggy, though the production and instrumentation plays crisp, bright, and clean. The album is beautiful—a multi-layered, wide landscape of sound.

Posted on 5/23/14