While the blues and roots scene is full of excellent musicians, good songwriters are a bit harder to come by. However, when both disciplines come together, the results can be spectacular. Such is the case for Bywater Call’s incredible sophomore album ‘Remain’. The Canadian septet combines elements of blues, soul and subtle hints of southern rock into irresistible songs with excellent vocals. ‘Remain’ sounds lively, the interaction between the musicians is fantastic, but most importantly, the songs are written and arranged really well. There is a timeless quality to ‘Remain’, which makes it the most pleasantly surprising music release of the year for me.

One of the biggest assets of ‘Remain’ is that no musician tries to play anyone else off the recordings. Sure, there is a lot of room for the powerful, slightly raspy alto of Meghan Parnell, but even she isn’t a dominant factor on the album. When the horns need to set up a melody or there needs to be some space for one of Dave Barnes’ short, often surprisingly spiky guitar solos, Parnell gladly gets out of the way. Having horns and keyboards also allows the Canadians to experiment with multiple approaches for their compositions, keeping the album fresh throughout its fifty-minute runtime.

Another thing that works in Bywater Call’s favor is that the band doesn’t consist of traditionalists. A song like ‘Let Me Be Wrong’ has its roots firmly in mid-sixties soul, but also is a tightly arranged song that could have been an Amy Winehouse hit had she still been alive today. ‘Go Alone’ is nearly a fairly beefy riff rocker, one with a cool guitar solo by Barnes to boot, but the horns and organ add a soulful flavor. And that’s how it makes complete sense that the propulsive funky rhythms of ‘Sea We Swim’, the short, riffy closer ‘Bring It Back’ and the almost poppy ‘Fortune’ are on the same album.

If I was a lazy reviewer, I would describe Bywater Call as sounding like The Black Crowes with a female lead singer. Bywater Call thankfully dwells less on country and americana, opting for soul instead. It is quite difficult to imagine the gospel leanings of ‘Locked’ on a Crowes album, while Bywater Call is far more about the songs than about the loose jam feel. Bywater Call never meanders on ‘Remain’. There is plenty of room for the songs to take on a different life on the stage, but it appears memorable hooks and other recognizable parts were the main focus of the songwriting process for ‘Remain’.

Given all the traditions roots fans value so much, it is difficult to be surprisining when playing that style. And yet, that is exactly what Bywater Call does on ‘Remain’. It is rare to find such good songwriting and such strong arrangements in a style that is known for its jams coming to life approach. And yet, ‘Remain’ has a live energy that is uncommon on composition-focused releases. As such, Bywater Call is the best of both worlds. With – and I cannot emphasize this enough – fantastic vocals. If you enjoy any of the styles mentioned in this review, do yourself a favor and give ‘Remain’ a spin.

Recommended tracks: ‘Let Me Be Wrong’, ‘Falls Away’, ‘Bring It Back’