The Ram – I Am Nowhere, I Am Everywhere
The Ram, the affectionate nickname for singer/songwriter Mark O’Donnell, is an “American triptych” (I wish I came up with that, but those are his words, not mine). Living a refreshing Southern California lifestyle while remaining influenced by his northeastern roots (go Bills), his latest album, the Americana and surf inspired I Am Nowhere, I Am Everywhere (IANIAE) is an amalgamation of everything that has made The Ram’s long and winding life what it is. Full of rosy-colored reflections on family life and his beloved late father, IANIAE glides through your speakers with the ease of California living while not-so-subtly informed by his snowier roots.
A cursory observation of IANIAE will show that there are only a few songs that are less than five-minutes long. While there are no three-minute, hook-in-your-face, ruthlessly-catchy radio rock hits on this LP, you’ll soon realize that IANIAE is more of an artistic expression – a picture of The Ram and his band occupying this very moment in time. There’s a notable surf influence here on the ultra-reverbed guitars and a palpable Americana tinge heard in the jazzy keyboard plinking… But The Ram himself was made to sing the blues – gruff and baritone, his voice permeates the songs here with the wisdom of a life that I’m currently perceiving as well-lived… And while his vocals are often at the forefront of the music, he always leaves room for that special, band-in-a-room element. Be prepared for extended guitar noodling or nimble keyboard twinkling – perfect example being song three, “Love is a Terrible Thing to Waste.” The Ram gleefully exclaims that he’ll be smoking himself a j, and if I partook, I agree with O’Donnell – this would be the perfect song to toke up to.
Our pick for album favorite goes to song four, “Unbound.” With it’s subtly fuzzed-out guitar and spindly, surf-inspired guitar strums, this song gets as close to a typical “single” as you might expect. The album title is derived from this song – in a glaring mission statement, O’Donnell sings, “I am nowhere, I am everywhere, I am free, I’m unbound.” It summarizes exactly what this album is all about – a group of guys, led by The Ram himself, riffing sonically about better times, while simultaneously having the kind of time they’ll look back on in 10 years and feel the same way about. It’s meta, but it’s cathartic – the kind of song that gives you hope in that carefree, devil-may-care sort of way. A close runner-up goes to album opener “Listen to the Cold,” a wistful reminisce about a place that sounds pretty close to the countryside surrounding our own beloved Buffalo.
This is the type of album that you should put on for a summer campfire and just let it play – for a few more rapid-fire suggestions, “Join Along,” is about as vibey as these dudes get. The fleeting “Flip Jam” is a minute-long jam (and a welcome album intermission) that explores elements of jazz… And doubling down on the bonfire theme, the shuffling drumbeat found on “Warmth of the Fire” is in a perfect position as the soulful album closer.
I Am Nowhere, I Am Everywhere is out now (April 18th, 2025). Check out “Join Along” via the YouTube embed below, or, find the entire album on Spotify. You can also find almost everything The Ram has to offer via this Linktree link.
Categorised in: Album Reviews
This post was written by Nick Sessanna