Wisdom Gained from Life Experiences Can Be Found on ‘Hard Lessons’

Hailing from Gainesville, FL, the trio of Big Shoals – Lance Howell (guitar/vocals), Jacob Riley (bass) and Michael Claytor (drums) released their well-received debut album Still Go On in 2014 and on July 15th, the band will follow that up with their sophomore effort, Hard Lessons.

Named one of the “50 Most Anticipated Albums of 2016” by The Revue, Hard Lessons certainly does not disappoint. Beginning with the flowing cadence of the rootsy “Only Queen,” the collection includes nine other well-crafted tracks that seamlessly blend Folk, Americana, and Roots Rock. The driving (and irresistible…hello, harmonica!) “You Ain’t Nothing Like The Girls” tells of a gal he wants to “sell his soul to” while the double negatives on “The Fall” relate the hard hitting demise of a relationship. Following one’s dreams becomes the central theme on “Love, Fortune or Fame” and on the solemn “Losing Hand” which, with its extended instrumental, cannot help but be thought-provoking “It’s a hard lesson learning that dreams are just dreams.”

The threesome dive into the life for a man in his mid-twenties with “Only God Knows” where themes of living, losing, facing failures and wondering what tomorrow brings surface, as well as on the rockin’ “Happy For A While” where a man who has felt the highs and rode the lows, yearns to have a little joy and on closer “The Way It Goes” a reflective, somewhat sad, yet ultimately accepting song of how life events and growing up changes a male friendship over time. “I guess maybe I’m afraid the guy I used to know won’t be around/I know time will change you, hell it’s changing me too, back then it used to move so slow/I see our glory days fading out of view/I guess that’s the way it goes.”

In addition to songs of love, heartbreak and broken dreams, the album is rounded out by two uniquely told narratives, “Union Son” the tale of Confederate soldiers and the Civil War and “Amelia” about the heartbroken man the famed aviation pioneer left behind.

With Hard Lessons, you get the sense that Howell, Riley and Claytor have experienced their own share of life’s highs and lows; gaining maturity and insight from lessons learned alongside a realistic view of life and love that is at the forefront of an album that eludes any sophomore slump – and makes Big Shoals a band you should definitely have on your radar.

Originally found on TheDailyCountry