REVIEW: Heart Of Pine – ‘Southern Soul Revival’

After originally breaking through with their stunning debut album ‘Highly Flammable’ in 2019, Athens, Georgia’s Heart Of Pine quickly established themselves as one of the more alluring names on the rise. Following up that success with their much-loved comeback EP ‘Southedelic, Vol.1’ the following year, the band have spent the last few years growing their devout fanbase and building up their reputation for swaggering southern-rock grooves. And after a flurry of new singles these last few months, they are back once again with their eagerly-awaited sophomore LP ‘Southern Soul Revival’, a record that heightens those enigmatic textures they have been exploring recently.

Much like what their initial full-length introduced them with, ‘Southern Soul Revival’ does very much what its title suggests. Brimming with this warm and invigorating atmosphere, permeated by some wonderfully woozy guitar hooks throughout, they are returning to the fold with some of their more passionate material to date. While the opener ‘Gone’ sets the stage for this warm and wistful release, by the time it hits the final track ‘Phetamine & Pearls’, the vibrancy has hit its peak, making for this wildly fun and enjoyable progression.

It may have taken longer to arrive than many of their fans would have wanted, but ‘Southern Soul Revival’ has certainly been worth the wait. Creating this bright and vivid groove from beginning to end, this is certainly one to turn on and kick back to after a long day’s graft.