These Magnificent Miles

It takes years spent in on the road to come up with an album like These Magnificent Miles. After a decade and a half, this Ohio quintet has developed a rugged Americana sound rooted in both early-‘90s grunge and ‘70s-era gospel rock. Frontman Scott Terry possesses a commanding, slightly world-weary baritone reminiscent of Eddie Vedder and Third Day’s Mac Powell. His cellar-deep tones and aching delivery lend weight to troubled love ballads (“The Air I Breathe,” “Probably Nothing,” “Space Time”), minor-key anthems (“Red Ryder”) and warnings of impending doom (“The World Is Over”). If all that sounds a little heavy, Terry and his band mates lighten matters with the bopping ditty “You Are My Las Vegas” and offers hope in the slow-burning “The Band.” On one level, These Magnificent Miles chronicles RWB’s own struggles as an unsigned act. In a larger sense, it invokes an American heartland wracked by economic decline and spiritual doubt, yet determined to survive. From either perspective, this is a tough-minded yet ultimately uplifting work.