"Counterpart"/"Limitations" — Keegan del Rio

Keegan del Rio

Release Date: April 24, 2020

Label: Variant Records

For the past several years, Keegan del Rio has been a key player in and around the Northern Virginia indie music scene, producing various bands and serving as the principal vocalist for garage rock revivalists The Offbrands. Last week saw the release of the double single “Counterpart”/”Limitations”, two long-backburnered songs that serve as del Rio’s first individual project. Both the A-side and the B-side are incredibly well-crafted, featuring tight production; a mature, diverse sound; and exceptional composition punctuated by intelligent lyricism and timely guitar solos and rhythm breakdowns. Fuzzy and distorted, yet simultaneously atmospheric, guitar riffs play off of raw, pounding percussion to expertly infuse the swampy sensibilities of Creedence Clearwater Revival with Cream’s psychedelic leanings, creating an altogether new sound that is nostalgic without being tired. Del Rio’s signature vocal delivery, perfected during his stint with The Offbrands, plays an impressive double duty, as it shines on both the shimmery and trippy “Counterpart” as well as the leaner and heavier “Limitations”. Naturally, it goes without saying that anyone looking for underground acid rock that presents a modern interpretation of the genre, while paying due homage to its mid-’60s cultural origins, would be hard-pressed to not listen to del Rio’s latest offerings.