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‘Hawthorn Black’ is a lovely acoustic ballad underpinned with some fine bass
guitar from Marty Young.

‘Stepping Stone’ is a catchy tune, whilst I could quite easily see Van Morrison

singing ‘Who Do They Think They Are’, it’s got that type of feel about it. ‘The Ring’
is a great stomp blues with some rasping guitar, whilst ‘My Oh My’ is a nice John
Lee Hooker / Canned Heat type boogie with some excellent harp work from Chris

Chalmers. ‘Go Home’ has that great blues shuffle feel and there is more than a light
gospel feel to the title track ‘Keep My Will Strong’. The album closes out in style
with ‘Let It Slide’ a lovely acoustic song.

I have to say right out that this is a fantastic album. The band all play their part with
a good balance of instrumentation, never overplaying and adding nice touches in
just the right places. The songs are well written and suit the band and I particularly

like the attention to detail of the start and ending of the songs. Chris Chalmers’
voice has come of age, it is strong and well defined and he can tweak it to suit the
different styles they play whether that be an acoustic ballad or a full on rock blues.

Some credit must go to the production which really makes this album stand out. I
like the contemporary feel it has with great use of different reverbs and delays
adding character to the songs. There are shades of Van Morrison in there which

shine through thanks to the awesome sounds that John McCullough digs out on the
organ. The production also reminded me of Gary Clark Jr. particularly with the use
of guitar based effects. I couldn’t help thinking that this band now have their own

sound just like the Hoax did when they burst onto the scene back in the 1990’s and
I see The 2:19 going on to bigger and better things so make sure you give this
album a spin, you won’t regret it.

Ged Wilson

Leavin’ Trunk—The River—Rooks Records

Leavin’ Trunk are a five piece blues band based
around the Essex/Suffolk area of the UK. Formed in

2021 Leavin’ Trunk are now starting to build a repu-
tation on the British blues circuit and “The River” is
their debut album.

The album opens with ‘Claw Hammer’ a harmonica
infused blues with a tongue in cheek cautionary tale

of the lady with the hammer. ‘Shop Around’ is their
take on the old Smokey Robinson number although this is probably more akin to
the Wilko Johnson version. Despite lacking a horn section they still manage to
deliver a good version of the Otis Clay classic ‘Tryin’ To Live My Life Without You’

and they keep that soul ballad vibe enhanced with some nice Dire Straits style
guitar licks.