Bob’s Dock – The Mystic


Sometimes a band is just a group of dudes who love music – and that seems to be the m.o. from Grand Rapids Michigan act Bob’s Dock. They specialize in the kind of pop rock that has an omni-appealing vibe, highly influenced by music from the 70s, alt rock, and indie rock. Their latest offering is The Mystic, a 10-song collection of guitar-driven songs with a jam/prog-band edge, feeling summery and fun without ever stepping too far into feel-good territory. Here’s a little bit about the band from guitarist/singer Jason Heath:

 

“Some artists are all about entertaining their audience with their music, but others have a deeper goal. They want to make a genuine connection… This is the case of Bob’s Dock.”

 

The project starts with “Don’t Look Back,” a great introduction to Bob’s Dock’s sound. Crispy and clean guitars sing out in unison to kick the song off before vibey bass and drums come in. An extended guitar solo plays out until the one minute mark before the vocals start – lyrics about “charging up your iPod” and “packing up your Chucks” call back to simpler times, a point that’s driven home in the chorus. “Don’t look back to your favorite places/don’t look back, they’re just empty spaces.” It’s the beginning of a recurring theme of nostalgia that appears throughout the album, fittingly, on the following track, “Chuck Taylors.” Talking about an old trusty pair of shoes and flannels that no longer fit is a right of passage for anyone over 30. It’s delivered with twinkly, guitar-driven verses from Heath and fellow guitarist Josh Sanders that explode into a super pleasant pop chord progression in the chorus. For some context, the album is conceptual in nature, centering around a central character, “Bob,” who dives into nostalgia for comfort but, in doing so, loses touch with life’s more important moments.

 

Of particular note on this album is the nimble bass playing from Brian Kleinsmith – his deeply in-the-pocket grooves mesh well with the tasteful drumming of Rick Flynn, and add a refreshing complexity to the otherwise pop-oriented chord progressions found on The Mystic. The intro to “Nothing Can Stop Me Now” is a perfect place to start for any bass enthusiast, but the biggest impact comes in the aforementioned “Don’t Look Back,” or even “Devil’s Island,” where his bass playing takes what would otherwise be a pretty straightforward rock song and turns it into something that feels a bit more prog oriented.

 

While the beginning of the album feels more rooted in pop rock and alt rock flavors, the latter half of the album really highlights the band’s prog-rock and 70s-influenced roots. Labeled “The Mystic I” – “The Mystic IV,” this portion of The Mystic really feels more like a storytelling journey, rather than simply a collection of likeminded songs. “The Mystic I / Where Am I, Where Are You?” is soaked with organ tones, mystical chimes, auxiliary percussion, and a menacing vocal chant that might be one of the coolest moments on the album. “The Mystic II – The Search” feels like a spiritual successor to “Come Sail Away” from Styx – while it doesn’t sound like Styx in the slightest, the nautical theme here and desire to sail away with your lover is a tried-and-true concept that any working man can get behind. More Kleinsmith theatrics follow on “The Mystic III – The Son of Odin,” which has one of the headiest bass solos I’ve ever experienced. “The Mystic VI – The Boulder & The Mountain” might get our vote for album favorite – channeling “The Mystic I” with its chant-like bridge and its soaring vibe, this one inspires the most emotion, even when the band is simply letting a grandfather clock ringing out as a capstone to the song. “The Mystic V – Long Waits Weigh the Greatest” continues this trend, but I love that Bob’s Dock brings it back around to a more pop-oriented sound on closing track, “The Mystic VI – Nothing Could Stop Him.” The outro here is frisky and fun with a fuzzed out guitar solo, bolstered by a rolling tom beat and chunky rhythm guitars.

 

The Mystic is out May 9th, 2025.

 

Categorised in: Album Reviews

This post was written by Nick Sessanna

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