“Redemption” is my first album under the banner of  “The Roadhouse Regulars” and, firmly in the tradition of concept albums, tells a story: The story of the Man, the Woman, the Preacher and the Way out of Town. 

It captures a redemptive journey of mine over many years, as well as my physical journey across the U.S., South to North and East to West, on a motorbike in 2015, and covers many big themes of those trips with each song capturing a particular moment as told through the characters of the Man, the Woman and the Preacher.

The album opens with Sell my Soul– a track that sees the Man squaring off against the Preacher who, more than anyone else, is the one in the soul selling business. The realisation of the Man, as was mine, is to keep your soul- own it- don’t hand it over to someone for an empty promise in return. Redemption is not the sole property of the church.

Without the Preacher, the Man turns to the wine, whiskey and women- to Lady Luck and the roll of the dice. Drinking barns and gambling halls have no shortage of empty promises too. Ride the Night talks of the search for the other things in life, without the Preacher to tell you what’s what, and where you’re in hands of “the Lady who’s fickle, who’ll come for a tickle but will leave you a broken man.”

Roadhouse Regular is an important track in the journey. Lady Luck becomes the Woman of mischief and mayhem and the song tells the story of a night that slowly smoulders and smokes before bursting into flames. Sensation, desperation, sinful temptation- it was a night to be seen.

God Only Knows is a very personal track and very dark in its themes. The Black Dog cries into the night and only stops when the Rooster Crows. It talks of the past lost- with those closest to the Man wondering what happened to their boy, and is followed by Love on Fire– where the Man knows there is now no turning back now. He is burnt for life. These are the songs of the loneliest hours before dawn where the night is the darkest.

The dawn of the day brings realisation. Me and My Stone had been a song in the back of my mind for a long time and tells the story of the Man seeing his own funeral- inspired by the many cemeteries I’ve seen on my rides and all those stones left alone. Like the ghosts of Christmas to come- a foreshadowing of where all journeys end. It’s followed by My Crossroads– a track that harks back to the long blues tradition of soul selling and bookends the body of the Man’s journey with the opening track. These two tracks, which talk of everyone’s fete and decisions along the way, lead to Let it Ride– the Way out of Town. It’s a great track with all the rhythms, noises and splutters of the big V-Twins we rode on across the U.S.- a great road trip song to put on as you head into the nearest sunset as fast as possible.

The second last track- Let it Flow– I think is one of the most beautiful, soulful songs I’ve ever written. It’s a story of the Man’s, and my, reflection on the journey where life becomes just a collection of memories- the good, the bad, the happy, the sad. It’s a redemptive song and one where the soul finds peace from savouring the moments of life.

Lastly, the album closes with Roadhouse Regular (Reprise) as somewhat of an encore to the story- but in this version, all the players are in full swing to take a bow. I think it’s a great rendition in its own right but makes the earlier, more raw version, something special.

I hope you enjoy the musical journey of Redemption by Michael Buining with The Roadhouse Regulars.