Here at the Send Me Your Ears studio today, we’ve been listening to the latest single from Ryan Yingst. Chaos was released on July 7th, 2023 and is a live one-take recording. The song explores and reflects on the meaning of having a true partner in life who will stand by us in our worst moments.
Yingst was attacked on the streets of Nashville in broad daylight in 2021. Shattering 3 bones in his face and requiring reconstructive surgery and months of rehabilitation, Yingst wrote this song for the person who stood by his side and was there for every step of his recovery.
Yingst mentions in his media kit that this song was recorded live off the floor in one take. This gives the track a real energy and passion, and the timing abilities of the band to stay together are a real joy to behold.
Chaos begins with beautifully warm, picked acoustic guitar patterns before a truly Celtic-sounding evocative violin joins the mix. When Ryan’s vocals come in, they are warm and intimate, close mic and breathy, with the sounds forming effortlessly at the front of his mouth with great character and gravel.
The choruses add in some beautiful and subtle harmonies that interlace with the violin. A mandolin adds in some extra character and the song just soars at this point.
When you’re led into the first violin solo, you realise you’re in the presence of something really special. The violin, provided by William Cook has an East Coast feel to it that we found positively mesmerising. During the instrumental section, the banjo briefly takes the lead before returning to another vocal section.
What made this track for us was the second violin solo. Classy playing with some superbly timed full band involvement and a spirited triplet run that gave us goosebumps. A bluesy guitar riff ends what was a stunning and interesting listen.
Ideas from our ears
Some more overall low-end depth could be achieved with a boost around 50Hz. The acoustic guitar is peaking around the 160-190Hz area so some careful EQing could help control those peaks. As always, these are just some ideas from our ears.
Final thoughts
This was our first introduction to the music of Ryan Yingst but we’re hooked. Catchy choruses, superb musicianship and a ‘home-grown’ feel of effortless class. Highly recommended.
https://www.ryanyingst.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ryanyingstmusic
https://twitter.com/ryan_yingst
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2fcotWEGbj3K0I3LW6QP7Z?si=nNs34bSKQtOKfMz_niM7bw
https://ryanyingst.bandcamp.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfHp4TZ2GSJzihwA1dnnsMg
https://www.instagram.com/ryan_yingst/