Album Review: “Nothing But Time”

By David Seaman | Echo

After their well-received fourth album "Sorry Verses" in 2011, Ringer T took a break. The band was going in different directions, with members in Tennessee, Michigan and Washington. However, they have gotten together one more time to record their newest album, "Nothing But Time," which will be released on iTunes and bandcamp.com the first week of June.

Senior Kris Schonewill is a member of the band, playing bass. His brother Kyle is lead guitar and producer, with Grant Geertsma on songwriting and acoustic guitar duties. Justin DeWaard rounds out the group on drums. Geertsma's lyrical songwriting has complimented Ringer T's unique mixture of acoustic folk rock and pop in the past, and it is still prevalent in "Nothing But Time."

The title is an appropriate one: Most of the songs focus on time, whether it is the longings of the past, the beauty of the present or the uncertain promises of the future. "Whisper of the past/Louder than what lies ahead," croons Geertsma in "What Lies Ahead." Many of the song lyrics range from feelings of heartbreak to happiness with life.

Geertsma's appealing songwriting is backed up well by the other members of the band. Ringer T is at their peak musically, and they are willing to shake things up with their sound. Folk rock is mixed with pop, R&B with gospel to make a unique listening experience. After a Tom Petty-like rocker in the opener "The Way It Shakes," great harmonization is featured on laidback tunes like "Blind Eyes" and "Good Timing." Strings are prevalent in the later songs, and Kris Schonewill spices things up with trumpets and keyboards in the closing track "On My Way."

Standout tracks include "Out of My Hands," "On My Way," "What Lies Ahead," "Into Your Own," "Let Me Be Your Man" and the title track. Ringer T finds good balance between solid rockers and longing, nostalgic ballads. Geerstma tries to understand life in songs such as "Nothing But Time" ("No more wasting time/Because someday I'm gonna die"), but also realizes that sometimes life is beyond human comprehension. As he sings beautifully in "Out of My Hands," "Nothing's harder to swallow than to know it's out of my hands/But it feels liberating to let it go." Ringer T is at its best when it combines thoughtful lyrics with musical ingenuity, and "Nothing But Time" is full of songs like these.

Ringer T's Facebook page (Facebook.com/ringertmusic) posts updates regularly. Make sure to check out "Nothing But Time" on iTunes and bandcamp.com in early June