CD Review: Ramin Karimloo - The Road to Find Out South

"Surrendering to a love that's pure
Will save the soul of a man I'm sure"

It's been a couple of years since Ramin Karimloo took The Road To Find Out - East and I was beginning to wonder if he'd gotten lost ;-) For the EP was announced as part of a series of 4, exploring the broadgrass fusion (Broadway and Bluegrass) that he has pioneered over recent years. But he's found his way, he's come back to us, and part 2 - The Road to Find Out - South “The Brooklyn Sessions” - has now been released. And following a similar musical path as "East", it's another entertaining collection.

Opening with Sheytoons (his folk-rock band with fellow thesp Hadley Fraser) track 'Wings' is again a statement of intent about where Karimloo's heart lies, its plucked banjo strings and sing-along chorus full of rousing warmth. 'Traveller's Eyes' feels equally at home in its dusty cowboy boots, though my favourite of the original tracks is the tender 'Letting The Last One Go', co-written with Victoria Shaw, a lovelorn tale of bruised and broken hearts.

And never forgetting his roots, we're also treated to The Sound of Music's 'Edelweiss' and Show Boat's 'Old Man River'. The former is restrained and pretty but the latter is something special, the richness of his voice shown off to its full extent with just an acoustic guitar for company and pure emotion pouring out in a scintillating climax to an already powerfully moving song. Here's hoping we don't have to wait another two years for Karimloo to Go West.

You can buy The Road To Find Out - South here



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