Jesse Blake Rundle - Next Town’s Trees

(Self Released, 2022)

Jesse Blake Rundle - Next Town’s Trees (Self-Released, 2022)

By Evan Toth

Idaho’s Jesse Blake Rundle offers a thought provoking second album exploring and encapsulating a period of transition in his life. Orchestration and arrangements are either sparse or lush - and sometimes both! Trombones and strings project a regal undertone. A melodic compositional tension resists the listener’s ear’s expectations. These elements, coupled with an array of ethereal and cathedral-sized background vocals create a contradictory auditory world that works! Rundle’s vocals occasionally overreach, his strongest approach is when he’s most vulnerable as he is on the album’s strongest track, “White Hot”. His lyrics shroud the details, but anyone with a sturdy imagination can apply the intended feeling and meaning. Rundle has a message to convey, and on this excellent and super quiet and dynamic vinyl pressing, he has his say.