In a time where darkness is easy to find, Richmond, Virginia’s Jon Tyler Wiley & His Virginia Choir aims to put hope back into those who need it with their debut full-length album, Pictures in the Dark.
With previously released singles “Mission” and “Song of Moving On” dropping in February and January of 2024 respectively, fans caught a glimpse of the versatile Americana and roots-rock elements the band so seamlessly incorporates into their sound. Both tracks offer vivid storytelling and uplifting sentiments amidst a broken, messy world (more on these later).
Pictures in the Dark is an album that emerged from the ashes of 2020 and years that followed, and demonstrates the band’s persistence to create something meaningful through adversity. Their ability to meld various genres including folk, soul, country, rock, and more is on full display, expressing a cinematic, often anthemic sound with lyrics that resonate.
The 8-track record ironically opens with a decidedly not optimistic title, “The Ending of the End.” This track is a triumphant, orchestral opening to the album, delivering an epic sound about the final moments on earth, which wouldn’t feel out of place as a musical’s final reprise. “It’s all gallows humor, written about waiting for the end of the world,” Wiley says. “I wrote this song in the middle of 2020, and it was my way of recognizing the pickle we were in that year, and making peace with whatever was going to happen.”
A commanding, marching beat and violin melody blends with tender guitar, building up to the victorious chorus. “The end of the world / It’s comin’ slow and steady / Buckle up kids / Best get ready for / The ending of the world / As we watch this fall to pieces / We’re all just praying / Jesus, can we get this over with?” frontman Wiley sings, accompanied by a melody that feels both optimistic and grand despite the song’s lyrical content.
The third track is the ballad “Coffee, Wine,” a song which showcases the gentle and more mellow side of the band whilst maintaining its emotional momentum. No less triumphant than “The Ending of the End”, “Coffee, Wine” uses a simple piano melody and fiddle to take advantage of Wiley’s warm, strained vocals, which work well to convey tenderness. Despite little to no country elements, the song came about after Wiley binge-listened to George Jones’ “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” and loved the idea of having a song with a plot twist in the lyrics.
“The glow of the last cigarette / Reflects off the glass of regret / Full on the table,” Wiley sings, countered by the more gentle words “Stay with me and the music / The mess can wait till the morning.” The track is as melancholy as it is loving, and showcases the band’s full range of ability when it comes to representing mixed, complex emotions.
The band returns to its more Americana country rock style with the seventh Exile On Main Street-esque track and final single, “Mission.” The track offers vivid storytelling and raw vocals, its catchy sway of guitar building up to an explosion of Americana-roots goodness, featuring the powerful and tender use of the fiddle.
The song is ultimately a tale of the world’s addiction and over-reliance to technology, and offers a message of consciously making efforts to put it away and enjoy the world and people around you. “You got to throw away your television / It’s only talking, it don’t listen / Put away the mobile phone / Sometimes it’s fine to be alone,” sways the chorus, celebrating the optimism that comes with having a choice: to participate in life, or to get sucked into to the illusion of the blue light. The track builds up to a lively, danceable chorus, complete with the fiddle’s distinct magic.
The album concludes with the poignant and powerful track “Song of Moving On,” an anthemic tribute to the electric guitar’s ability to convey soft, tender emotions. “This is a song of hope,” the lyrics aptly state. “This is a song of joy / Sung by the tired and beaten / Hear the quiver in their voices,” sings Wiley, articulating the blend of emotions present throughout the entirety of the album: an acknowledgement of the dark and a gentle turning towards the light.
With influences that shape their sound ranging from Springsteen to Wilco to Dawes and much in between, Jon Tyler Wiley & His Virginia Choir have carved out their own unique Americana roots-rock sound, and Pictures in the Dark aims to prove a pivotal moment in the band’s trajectory into the burgeoning Americana scene.
Regarding the creation of the new album, Wiley states, “This album is the most mature thing we’ve done. The writing sounds more deliberate, more orchestral.” He went on to say, “This is very much our ‘pandemic record’: there’s a lot of uncertainty, a lot of grappling with mortality. There’s also a lot of hope.”
Jon Tyler Wiley and His Virginia Choir have a string of shows lined up after the release of Pictures in the Dark, including an album release show in Vienna, Virginia, at Jammin Java April 5th.
