Reviewed by Simon Eden

When I heard this Pennsylvania-based acoustic singer's version of Adele's "Rolling In The Deep" I wondered if it was a better musical performance than the original. Even if the answer is no, you get the idea about the quality of musicianship here: top notch. Tim's biog tells that he learnt guitar by playing Metallica guitar riffs which is no easy feat. The consequence is not loud metal, but chilled out acoustic vibes that portray an ability of playing guitar as high as Newton Falkner; like Newton, Tim can make a guitar do stuff that I didn't even know could be done. The arrangements are surprising as well. Almost everything on the album is just Tim's smooth "cool cat" voice with his guitar, both occasionally double tracked, so Tim is providing his own backing vocals or lead guitar over rhythm guitar. Although a mainstream project, 'Big Things' does find space for Tim's faith to come through. The single "Save Me" is an example of this (". . .where silence is golden and Jesus saves/Right in the nick of time, in this backwards place"). The complexity of Tim's guitar work makes one guitar sound as layered as a Mexican mariachi band. All in all, this fine album demonstrates that Tim is comparable in talent to Jack Johnson. So why hasn't he reached Johnson's status yet? I think the answer is that though every track here is hugely enjoyable, there isn't an obvious song (like Jack Johnson's "Better Together") to propel Tim to superstardom. When he finds that, Tim will surely become the next "Big Thing".

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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