REVIEW: Pony Gold “High Road Reverie”

Pony Gold High Road Reverie

What a great sound. There is something hauntingly beautiful in the sonic atmosphere that Pony Gold aka Theresa Bromley creates when playing together with her band. On High Road Reverie the northern country sound aches through the strings and slides along the bars. It’s an impressive debut and one you will find yourself listening to time and time again. There’s a soulful blues throughout the album that pairs exceptionally well with the song structures.

All the musicians work great together and created a unified whole in this album. Their sound is consistent and strong. The songs are well crafted and highlight each of the exceptional talents that comprise the whole. Pony Gold (Theresa Bromley) is on acoustic guitar and vocals and is backed by Leon Power on drums, Erik Nielsen on bass, and Matt Bromley on slide guitar. In addition, John Sponarski plays electric guitar, Scott Smith adds the pedal steel and banjo, Leeroy Stagger adds vocals, acoustic guitar and percussion, Jessica Benini is on vocals, and Daryl Havers is on organ.

Pony Gold hails from northern British Columbia and this is her debut album. It doesn’t feel like a debut album. The quality of the songwriting and tightness of the music sound as if she’s been writing songs and playing together with her band for more than a few years and an EP. Overall the album has a motif of the struggle to make it big, and considers how to create a future outside of the small town endless cycle. But what exactly is making it big in this business? The journey ends up being more important than the final destination, and High Road Reverie tells the story of that discovered journey.

The entire album is great, but a few songs stand out in particular. “Montreal” has a smoky blues sound and the combination of organ and pacing of the bass with some stretched out guitar work truly highlight Theresa’s voice. It’s unique and has a Fleetwood Mac blues era vibe. Even her voice sounds extra smoky on the journey to Montreal. The vocals are haunting and sultry and one can almost envisage the blue tendrils of smoke casting ambience throughout a small club as they build to a crescendo.

Another great song is the album opener, “Big in the City.” It creates a hamster wheel like effect that matches the day to day race to get to the top that is the never ending circuit of success. We find them questioning what exactly does making it mean. The slide guitar and pedal steel circumambulate around the vocals and the spinning hectic nature of the city is encapsulated in song. It’s really impressive how they create this atmosphere without over production.

The album comes out this Friday, October 3 via Neon Moon Records and will be available on all streaming platforms. You can also download it direct from their website: https://www.ponygoldmusic.com

High Road Reverie was produced by Leeroy Stagger at Hipposonic Studios, and Neighborhood Recorders in Vancouver and Victoria, BC. It was mastered by João Carvalho and engineered by Kris Fearon. All the photography on the album is by Victoria Black.

Track List