Alabama Rose is a developing rock artist with an original sound that’s dark and hypnotic. Based in Birmingham, Alabama, Rose blends vintage rock, soul, blues, and roots music into modern songs that she records live to capture the true human essence of what she does. Her latest release, the single “Come With Me,” is now available on all major streaming platforms and the track is a wonderful bit of driving rock and roll with a hint of reverb-drenched psychedelics around the edges. It was recorded live in Nashville at The Bomb Shelter by Jon Estes (Jon Paul White, Jeff Coffin, Bela Fleck) and mastered by TW Walsh (Sufjan Stevens, Ben Gibbard, The Shins) and these two pros helped Rose bring the heat, translate her energy to tape, deliver us a song that immediately pulls listeners into its universe.
“Come With Me” is a road song of the first order
It’s an invitation to escape and puts Rose’s desire to disappear into the ether never to return front and center. It’s the sort of thing everyone thinks about but few ever accomplish. Everything about “Come With Me” feels like the endless road trip of a lifetime, from its highway-speed groove to the wide-open spaces of Rose’s lyrics and melody. She reaches out to those feeling her message, telling them to “take your cross and come with me.” Rose reminds us that the road is often a place of redemption and rebirth where you can live out a new story any time you need to by simply hitting the nearest interstate.
The video is a travelogue of footage shot by Rose and her husband over the last year or so of the people and places they encountered while shaking their own burdens loose. It has an amazing randomness to it that feels like the blur of memories that have piled up after a long trip. Its homespun vibe is also appealing and honest and enhances an already-strong song. Alabama Rose may be a fresh name to some but she deserves a place in your record collection. She’s providing just the sort of personal authenticity the world needs.
-Single and video review by Mike O’Cull, independent music journalist. www.mikeocull.com
