The Young Romans – Tiger Child

The Young Romans is a band in the fashion of The Civil Wars and She and Him, an alternative band that primarily consists of a man and a woman. The Young Romans could hardly sound more different than those band though. They are a much more full, rock sound and a much more finely tuned band than the others. This isn’t music that’s raw; this is music that has been tweaked and perfected and it sounds great.

Often folk duo, especially recently, have taken on a sound that’s very unique or uncommon, but The Young Romans sounds less like a duo and more like an alternative band, one that sounds at points like Coldplay, John Mayer, and Graham Colton. The second track, “Naive”, sounds hauntingly like a Graham Colton song. It’s not refreshing, it’s not an original song when taken by itself, but the album is  another good addition to a crowded alternative rock genre.

“Where You Go”, the album’s third track is fairly unique, it’s got a constantly strummed guitar part that really, along with a bass drum, acts like the rhythm of the song. It’s a very well done track. “Tiger Child,” the title track, sounds a lot like early acoustic John Mayer song and that’s a good thing. If John Mayer still made music like that, people would still like him.

“Upside Down” sounds a lot like a One Republic song, one that starts out with strings and comes in with understated vocals and slowly builds. It’s also an awesome song that’s about a guy finding out about his girlfriend cheating on him and the excuses that she made.

There are two tracks on this album that really stand out, “Nothing Good About Goodbyes” and “The Logical Song.” The former is a piano driven song that starts with “I will follow you to the edge of the earth” and a chorus that has lines like “I will not forget our story” and “great things to grey skies, there’s nothing good about goodbyes.” It’s a well done song all the way around the highlights of the originals on the album. Perhaps the most striking song, though, is The Young Romans’ cover of Supertramp’s “The Logical Song.” It’s a haunting rendition of a song that is familiar to almost everyone. It’s a different take (and one that feels like the music and words match) on a classic song from one of the 70s/80s best and most underrated bands.

The Young Romans are a band on the rise. They have a song, “Where You Go”, that is the end credit song in “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen,” an independent film with Ewan McGregor. They have a great new album and are doing things exactly the way that you want to see a band do them. Be sure to keep your ears open for more from The Young Romans.