Will Thomas Reed ‘To Whom It May Concern’ EP Review

Tracklist:

1. Rumors

2. What You Didn’t Say

3. Home Is Where The Bar Is

4. Hold You Someday

5. Play It Back

Will Thomas Reed from Charlottesville, Virginia begins a solo career with this catchy EP that should appeal to Country fans without going down the road of Bro-Country. These songs would be welcome on Country stations here in Texas and would not have been out of place back in the 90’s which makes for a nice refreshing change. Reed has played guitar in 12 Stones and Throwing Gravity, but this is his first time fronting his own project.

‘Rumors’ gets things going with an up tempo Country rhythm that namechecks Fleetwood Mac in the chorus and would make an ideal single at Country radio, especially during the summer. There is a little edge to the track and Reed shows a solid vocal delivery that at times reminds me a little of Mike Eli.

Some brief piano introduces ‘What You Didn’t Say’ before the full band joins for a ballad that harkens back to the 90’s and early 2000’s, and it sounds all the fresher for it. It is not my favorite song on here, but I really like the addition of the subtle female backing vocals.

‘Home Is Where The Bar Is’ reminds me of Kenny Chesney before he moved out to the islands with its nice wordplay and lighthearted feel. I can understand this being the first single, even if I would have went with ‘Rumors,’ especially here in Texas.

‘Hold You Someday’ slides in as another ballad but has a darker edge musically. Lyrically, I wish it told the story more than it does as I would have preferred another verse or a bridge to paint the canvas some more as opposed to the extra chorus.

‘Play It Back’ puts the focus on fun with Reed showing some nice range within the context of the music. Reed shows again that there is a wide gap between the music played on radio today, and the Country music that the likes of Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, and even Brad Paisley introduced 25 plus years ago.

At five songs, this EP introduces Will Thomas Reed as a solo act and provides him with a couple opportunities to get on the radio. I would encourage him to continue to push in the direction of ‘Rumors’ and put just one ballad on an album to really make it standout. For me, he will be an artist to watch in the years to come.

‘To Whom It May Concern’ is released June 1st.