Tumbler ‘You Said’ Review: The Cure Meets Soul Asylum With a Side of Dylan

The trio of Harry and Richard Grace and Dave Needham are hard to describe, but that’s never a bad thing when it comes to music.

Thanks to poetically-solid lyrics, catchy guitar riffs and Harry Needham’s eccentric, but beautiful voice, Tumbler has something special here in “You Said.”

“Bueller” is by far the best song on the track, as Harry seems to flow in a lyrical way that would make both Dylan and Lou Reed proud, but with a sway-inducing way that makes the song more radio-friendly than you’d think. Make no mistake, this track has folk elements, but there’s more “oomph” to the sound, like an English Americana- deep and polished. The main guitar-riff is uber catchy, but there’s plenty of slowdown and diversity in the track.

“Break or Fall,” is another amazing track that has a harder rock feel to it, but one that again, Harry Needham steals the show with. His almost screaming “Break or Fall,” at several points of the song is charismatic and pulls the listener in every time. Add in a juicy guitar line and consistent drum work and it feels more like an ‘80s John Cougar Mellencamp track than something from a band rooted in folk. If anything, it proves how diverse the band is and just how deep their sound is.

Other tracks the likes of “Rowan Tree,” “Moments” and “London Girl” have more folk and story-based appeal, but there’s the consistent solid guitar work that makes them catchy. You’ll definitely find them stuck in your head at some point if you give the album a chance. Of them all, “Rowan Tree,” has a beautiful lullaby appeal to it. It’s something you can definitely sing a child to sleep to.

A surprise track “Don’t Think Twice (She Says) has more of a funk-edge to it and it’s hear, with the multiple instrumentation that you get a great idea of the band’s full potential. Feeling like The Cure here, Tumbler has plenty of balance. This is something that will ensure there’s a track on the album for everyone, but mellow folk fans, to balladeers and even stoners looking for some extra funk. “Flowers and Miracles” is also another surprise, as it feels rooted in the Dylan style, with plenty of country and even bluegrass odes in it, with harmonica and a strong lyrical base. Overall, it’s another track that’ll induce smiles.

Because of their ability to drastically change their sound, but still maintain a smooth lyrical base, Tumbler’s “You Said,” is an album for not only lovers of folk and hipster tunes, but anyone that wants sound with real depth.

For more information on Tumbler, Click Here.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14263 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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