by Derric Miller
— Managing Editor —
Ron Keel does this at times … he’ll write a song that instead of making you bang your head, crack a beer and do a shot of 90 proof, it just makes you think. He did it with “Serenade,” especially the updated version; with the longing in “Just Like Tennessee;” and with everyone’s favorite, “Tears of Fire.”
Add “When This is Over” to the list.
Just a simple, acoustic beginning embraces you when you hit play, and Keel’s voice slides in like a voice in the night. It’s so heartfelt and honest, you’d think this is a ballad. It isn’t.
If there was a ’70s hippy track updated, that just asked for brotherhood and to make us all realize we are in this together, good or bad, it’s “When This is Over.” It makes old hat over political fighting, wars over territory, bombings over religious beliefs, or as the band plays, “when this is over, we’ll forget about that bullshit, we thought would never end.”
There’s always a “Song of the Summer” and you might as well already name this that song for 2022. But the way it’s written, the introspection, the ability to put into musical form something so seemingly radical as acceptance and love that just makes you sing along and smile … hell, make it the song of every summer thereafter too …
Band:
Ron Keel-lead vocals, guitar
Geno Arce-bass
Jeff Koller-drums
DC Cothern-lead guitar
Jason Haven-guitar
Scott Schmitt-keyboards
Label: RFK Media
