Josh Rennie-Hynes “Patterns” (Soundly Music, 2019)

After making a name for himself in his native Australia, Josh Rennie-Hynes upped sticks from his home in Queensland and – upon being granted the impressive Nashville Songwriters Residency grant by the Australian Council for the Arts – made Music City USA his permanent base and where he would record his third solo record. The opening lines of the album (from the track ‘Standing Still’) feel like Rennie-Hynes is speaking to himself of the importance of pushing his creative and geological boundaries: “Oh my love you won’t / Ever find the things you want / If you don’t trust yourself once in a while.”

Trust himself he did, moving to Nashville with very limited connections personally and professionally, but it’s a move that has paid off. This is an album solidly influenced by his new place of residence. Produced by guitarist Alex Munoz – who has worked with the likes of Margo Price – and featuring drummer Allen Jones and bassist Christopher Griffiths (both of whom are regulars in Will Hoge’s band) – the tone, unsurprisingly, shifts effortlessly between country and rock, with the harmonica making a few welcome appearances.

Stay’, written about the recounting of an LSD trip, is floaty and dreamlike: “The sky is falling down / And I don’t know where I am / Just a thousand different things / All scattered by the wind.”. ‘Ghosts’ features lush sounding strings accompanying lyrics that tell of regret over his past actions in a relationship: “There’s things I never told you / Things I always hid.”High Road’ see him shaking off such insecurities and confidently exclaiming: “I’m taking the high road out of here”, as he leaves a relationship in the dust. ‘Home to You’ is the perfect album closer, Rennie-Hynes’s voice creating beautiful harmonies with Erin Rae’s.

Although some tracks can fall into the forgettable category, with this strong collection of Nashville crafted songs, it feels like Rennie-Hynes has found the path he was meant to be on, and it’s with excitement we await to see where that will lead him next.

A set of well crafted Nashville-influenced songs which show great promise for Josh Rennie-Hynes's future
7/10
7/10

About Helen Jones 128 Articles
North West based lover of country and Americana.
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[…] new album out on the 27th of this month, called ‘Patterns‘ (read the full review here) which the Australian borne musician has recorded in his new home of Nashville.  It’s got a […]

[…] excellent new album out on the 27th of this month, called ‘Patterns‘ (read the full review here) which the Australian borne musician has recorded in his new home of Nashville.  It’s got a […]

[…] excellent new album out on the 27th of this month, called ‘Patterns‘ (read the full review here) which the Australian borne musician has recorded in his new home of Nashville.  It’s got a […]