JD & the RetroRyders are back with “twoferu” single

JD & the RetroRyders return with their “twoferu” single, with “Fire In My Fingertips” backed with “No Secret.” The concept of the two-sided single has been a format of choice for me, so this is right up my alley and the band rocks. JD himself is Joe DeMeo and lead guitar player Al Lepson come from backgrounds in New York, and the rest of the RetroRyders came together in Huntington Beach, CA where they’re now based, playing venues like the Coach House and others, with a road tested EP behind them and a bright future ahead.

MORE ON THE BAND: https://jdretroryders.wixsite.com/website

These are truly-talented players without a doubt, bringing a high energy force without the heavier and more classic rock clichés about them. It is more of that product of the 60s than what most bands are doing today, by harking back to a more sensible era all its greater values. They make it easy to get inspired to describe the infectiousness of their music with two songs that stand out on different platforms of the same basic structure. The rock ‘n roll qualities are as pure as they come and that is the best way to describe JD & the RetroRyders.

The retro style meets modern sound is one of the first things I noticed when I first heard “Fires In My Fingertips,” so it’s not all ancient by any means, it’s just good to the bone rock without the frills and thrills and darker chills. If you like mid-tempo AOR, you can appreciate this song, it has everything any repertoire is made of, from the songwriting to the singling and playing of these fine musicians. The sound translates to the world with the appeals of the past without an ear to the present and future but doesn’t reinvent either of them. 

The fire and energy of the guitar playing by Al Lepson is worth noting in particular, laying his incendiary sauce all over it with an electric twang making it reach out and grab you. I love the way the vocal harmonies swirl around DeMeo’s voice like they were absolutely made for each other, which perhaps the voice of Wendy being in a relationship helps, but also added by Nicole Kubis and Nicole Perreira. And it wouldn’t be complete without the pulsating rhythm section of Mike Willson and Adrian Sanchez to round it out.

DEEZER: https://www.deezer.com/us/artist/69530792/radio?autoplay=true

With the benefit of two songs here, the next one is also fantastic in a more sublime way, with a pop laden groove that won’t quit. “No Secret” is just as good as “Fire In My Fingertips” with a cross up in the mix between the two that leaves me both enormously satisfied but also wanting more. And the thing I like best between the two is how “No Secret” dares to run a little longer to keep the music in your head where it belongs. I like this band even more than the last time I covered them. What;’s more it’s also very well-produced, and these songs put me onto more of their songs worth checking out.

Michael Rand