Red Clay Strays is a country band, from Mobile, Alabama. They have a fresh, classic country-western sound that dabbles in 1950’s rock. Frontman Brandon Coleman’s voice is smooth like butter peppered with gritty crumbs of toast and bacon and he easily transitions from a raw growl to an Elvis vibrato croon. Flawlessly performed tracks with themes of redemption for the lost, recovery from brokenness, and trust in God, make this band sympathetic without loosing their authentic swagger.
Coleman introduces the album, Live at the Ryman, by inviting the audience to get as rowdy as they like concluding with a personal note, "You're going to be a part of this (live recording) with us.”
A tone of camaraderie is set.
The second track on the album “I Just Wanna Be Loved" burns with the relatable lyrics of a weary soul trying to achieve it’s own salvation...
“Can you tell me I'm worthy or important.
Am I workin' hard enough?
Oh, I just wanna be loved.”
In “Will The Lord Remember Me” (notice the lack of question mark) the thief on the cross wrestles with his eternal destiny but concludes, “Yes, Oh Yes, He heard my feeble cry, from bondage set me free, and when I reach those pearly gates, He will remember me.” Anyone who thinks their sin will keep them from entering heaven can be encouraged by this truth. It is not our righteousness that opens heaven's gates to us, but the Lord’s.
“Disaster” Explores the highs and lows of the lives of the saints. The stories of souls aware of their need for God, crying out when failure strikes. The lyrics are so good I need to heavily quote them here:
“If you're lookin' for a prophet, I'll tell ya I ain't.
But I know when it's gonna rain.
So what do you have to say about life?
The One we laid down to turn dark to light.
The world let Him down, so He came around,
cause He wanted us back again.”
This album looks the past full in the face, leaves it in God’s hands and walks away. The deep eternal themes don’t keep it from being an incredibly fun and healing listen, with rambling guitars, driving drums, naughty bass lines and powerful vocals. This is the gospel rock that our souls crave.
Though not explicitly marketed as a Christian band per se the Christian themes are palpable and cannot be denied. A broken and contrite heart, our God does not despise. And if you long for mercy this album is a great place to start. Give it a listen and let it bring you to the Maker to receive His Love and Salvation.
Listen here on Spotify.
You can also hear their new album Made By These Moments here.
If you're interested in seeing them on tour, bandsintown has all the dates of their current tour around the country.
Scarlett
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Did you enjoy this review of 'Red Clay Strays' by our new writer, Rebecca Croft? She's doing as great job, and this is such a great band! We hope you enjoy the article and let us know what you think of the 'Red Clay Strays' down below (with sub) or on our social media!
