Roadside Graves hails from Metuchen, New Jersey and is now a seven piece versatile band. The CD has a mix of slower sparse arrangements and other songs utilizing the whole band’s sound.  As nice as some of the slower tunes are, it seemed somewhat of a waste to not fully utilize the whole talented band.  We don’t see bands of this size very often. The band makes especially good use of Mike DiBlasio’s piano, which features prominently on the title track as well as �Man at Every Port.�   The aforementioned �West Coast� to me is an instant classic.  I would not be surprised to see some alert movie director nab it for a soundtrack.  In anthem-like fashion the singer boasts "I’ve got a name, and I’ve got a place for every scar you see on my face. I’ve got a heart that won’t quit, won’t break, no matter what you do." Singer/songwriter John Gleason and guitarist Jeremy Benson were in Utah on a road-trip when they wrote the bands first tune, �Song for a Dry State.� Gleason and Benson provide some wonderful vocal harmonies throughout the album often with a ‘twang’ you wouldn’t expect from Jersey boys. The album is a collection of interesting stories that stand strongly on their own. Unfortunately many albums are not accompanied by the press releases that often accompany sampler/demo CDs.  The press release with this CD made clear what some of these songs are really about; something that is more difficult to do when just listening to the songs by themselves. I find the additional insight adds to the enjoyment of the songs.  They feel more personal and intimate to me when I know more about what the singer is trying to say. For instance, the song �West Coast�  "is a portrait of an individual’s resiliency in the face of a collapsed family and crumbled dreams.  The song was inspired by Dave Eggers’ semi-autobiographical a Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius in which the author is thrust into guardianship of his younger brother after the sudden death of his parents." Another song, �Women in Black� is about a guy who plots to kill his wife by driving their car off a cliff.  Maybe �press releases� should be included with all commercial CDs?! Musically the songs are very diverse in speed as well as varied in instrumentation.  �Family and Friends,� the opening cut, starts slowly but builds up as additional instruments join in.  �The Black Hills� is a sparser arrangement that leans heavily on harmony vocals.  The title track features great interplay between acoustic guitar and piano with a nice fadeout ending on acoustic guitar.  �Radio� opens with soft vocal harmonies, then speeds up with the B3 organ, ending with piano and guitar. "It was a good night on the radio!"  The band makes things interesting by varying the songs so much. The recently married Gleason has songwriting skills beyond his young age. Even in his relatively short life he has experienced enough to fuel his songs and maybe even figure out a few of the secrets to life and changing priorities brought on by marriage and family.  In �Live Slow� he sings, "I’ve been here long enough to know I’ve been here long enough.  I’ve drank enough to know I’ve drank enough.  I’ve loved enough to know I’ve loved enough.......Live Slow, Die Old."  I’ve heard enough good music to know when I’m hearing good music. This is good music!