A Necessary Roadtrip

“Old “P”” by Sly Roosevelt is something that should be playing over the speakers of a Greyhound bus as it lumbers past state and city borders, everything blurring together into a monotonous strip of scenery that never stays still. Something to drown out the endless chatter of the self-important on impossibly long phone calls prompting the mind to drift into the negative space between trees and skyline; the music will make the leaves greener and bring life to the grey asphalt, no doubt about it, slowly sapping the dullness of the journey with a vivid and exuberant shout of color across the landscape. When you travel, you want something liberating to accompany you along the way so that despite there being a final destination set in stone, you can still cherish the illusion of being free. The feeling of having no obligations and nothing to tie you down to any one place, not a thing breathing can hold you back from acting on a whim. You feel like a weight has been lifted off of your entire being and, if you could walk right at the moment, you would have to struggle to keep yourself from hovering above the ground. The once obnoxious phone calls become intriguing and a welcome intrusion upon the solitude that comes with traveling alone. The desire for human interaction resurfaces as strongly as the renewed zest for life that is prompted by the music.

Simply put, Sly Roosevelt has the power to make the journey come alive even for the most detached and reserved of individuals. They don’t stick to a specific style, but the dominant factor in all their songs is the same. This band just exudes optimism and I must admit that it is a welcome change from the usual fare that I immerse myself in. Music that makes me happy, damn, who would’ve thought I would dig something like that? It’s about time for me to get a new mp3 player and hit the road very soon anyway. The rest of you can grab the EP here.