Tristan Armstrong - “The Lender”

Tristan Armstrong makes an appearance on the blog with his latest release, “The Lender,” a song filled to its tippy top with a robust and vintage flavor.

The track opens up with a single shot of cowbell before it cuts loose into the vibrant and retro sounds that we generally only find in the songs of yesteryear. “The Lender” radiantly overflows with a late ‘60s vibe and you’re bound to immediately notice how well it all goes down with your morning coffee, so it’s only fitting that the first line is something that Armstrong overheard in a coffee shop.

Everything in the recording is glued together quite perfectly with a thick and creamy compression, which is most apparent in the track’s rhythm section. The acoustic guitar hammers out a solid foundation for the vocals to find their place and they are a definite highlight here, as Armstrong has quite the gift for nailing a tone that will appeal to Wilco fans, as well as lovers of CCR and Skynyrd.

The electric guitar adds plenty of ear candy in between lines of lyrics, and the vocal harmonies make their way into all the right places. There’s even a dynamic shift that occurs just past the halfway point, complete with a delightful string arrangement. With “The Lender,” Armstrong has definitely set the bar for our slew of weekend releases and we hope that you’ll love it as much as we do, but you’ll never know until you press play.

-TM