If you’re not careful, The Ties That Bind will catch you off guard and pull you from the depths of heartbreak to pure elation, and back again, in a matter of minutes.

The EP, recorded and performed by indie quartet The Ritz, has been out for a few weeks now and I still feel like I’m unpacking the profound six-song roster. But The Ties That Bind is also celebration of The Ritz’s cumulative efforts to date. Four of the six tracks were released as singles during 2023 and 2024 and the additions of the jangly, ‘Left On Read’ and the anthemic ‘Out Of The Blue’, breathes yet more life into the previously released tracks, such as ‘Give Me A Sign’ and ‘Back Against The Wall’.

Lead vocalist of The Ritz, Robbie Joyce, who wrote all six tracks on The Ties That Bind, has said about the EP, “The Ties That Bind is our debut EP and it includes all of the songs that we have released so far! We’re very excited for everyone to hear the new tracks and how they sound with our previous work. We feel like the title of the EP encapsulates the mood of the songs, especially the lyrics, as they are all about the relationships that we have with one another, and what brings us together.”

The Ritz kick off The Ties That Bind with one of their first singles, ‘Give Me A Sign’, which was originally released back in October 2023. It’s a track packed with soul and has a certain grandeur to it with Joyce dipping into Jagger-esque vocal tones and Finley Armitage (lead guitar) playing pulsating, heist-like, riffs before hurtling into the track’s multiple turnarounds.

Equally as frenzied is the EP’s closing track, ‘When I Need You Most’, also originally released in 2023. Like another track on the EP, ‘Out Of The Blue’, it’s soaked in indie nostalgia and is an upbeat note to end on, with a thoughtful message that rounds off the narrative thread of relationships. ‘Left On Read’ comes up next after ‘Give Me A Sign’, which was recorded at The Lounge Studio in Wigan with producer, Gary Nuttall.

‘Left On Read’ is the jewel in the EP’s six-song crown. It’s only three and a half minutes long, but it crams so many different styles into it, that you’re forced to go back and listen again. The heartland- rock intro and the verses, with their country swing, combine unexpectedly well with Joyce’s choral vocals to depict a character lost in adoration and waiting for their love interest, who is taken. He sings, ‘If he will give you your desires, then I won’t take his place. Find me if your match expires. I’m not that hard to trace.’

Also recorded with Nuttall at The Lounge Studio was ‘Out Of The Blue’, the penultimate track on the EP. A tight rhythm section combines well with Tom Warrilow’s drums and hints of a more expansive chorus to come. For the chorus, Armitage moves up the fret board with incisive licks that continue even after the chorus has finished. Meanwhile, Joyce opens up about the fear of change and loss, ‘You said “Let’s leave town and start a new”. Now everything is changing out of the blue’.

The addition of ‘Out Of The Blue’ adds more striking depth to other tracks on the EP that delve into themes of change and being at a crossroads. ‘Only Time Will Tell’ has a certain melancholy tone to it, as does next track ‘Back Against The Wall’, but with its punchy riffs and sweeping rides, Joyce finds peace in the unknown despite feelings of loneliness. Seb Cook-Abbott’s velvety bass gives ‘Only Time Will Tell’ further warmth as Joyce opens up and poignantly asks, ‘Where are we going from here?’.

The Ritz will be heading to The Hairy Dog, Derby, on November 29th playing alongside The Castros, With The Mease and The Denabys.

Review by Charva Writes Stuff