Rich Lerner & The Groove - Push On Thru (Self-Released)

Rich Lerner & The Groove is a band from North Carolina that have been together for close to two decades, and they have been the heart and soul of many a party. Lerner has been around since the ’90s, releasing a number of solo albums on Rockduster, and he’s been with The Groove ever since 2000. Their latest album, Push On Thru, presents a band tighter than ever, and in wonderfully relaxed form. Although they are essentially, at heart, a jam band, they prove able to write some cracking slices of pop eclecticism.

Sonically speaking, the band effortlessly combines the folkier elements of The Grateful Dead with the power pop of groups like Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and a harder blues rock edge à la The Rolling Stones. They are just as capable at acoustic, wistful pop melodicism on songs like “She Kept My Room Warm” as they are at tough hard rock grooves like on the tribute to Murphy’s law, “It’s Always Something.” It’s highly probable Rich Lerner & The Groove is best enjoyed as a raucous live act, but Push On Thru remains a highly inspired and irresistibly catchy listen.