Mike Reeb

"Serious, emotionally raw songwriting. 'It's Been a Real Hard Year' is a gripping, protest song with a rolling delivery. A new tune, 'Like a Wing' sounds like an old gospel song that Reeb found in a dusty, tattered old song book from 80 years ago. It is well worth a listen." - Tim Brouk, 2008

"In many ways, Without The City Lights has a quality that is reminiscent of Bruce Springsteen's forlorn and haunting epics, Nebraska and The Ghost Of Tom Joad. A photo of a barren brick wall with just an arc of light from a single bulb adorns the cover of Reeb's CD, effectively capturing the mood of this bare-bones disc and its metaphorical musical journey through darkness in search of the light. A standout on this album is 'Oh, We Need A Change,' a tale of a wounded relationship in a tailspin that leaves one feeling taken for granted, forsaken and financially strapped. Haven't many of us been there before?" - Tom Lounges, 2006

"Without The City Lights is a stripped down affair showcasing Reeb's songwriting with very little embellishment. His introspective lyrics are laid on a bed of acoustic guitar backed occasionally by violin or muted electric guitar. Reeb has a pleading vocal tone that is reminiscent of early Bill Mallonee, which brings the longing out of songs like 'Oh, We Need A Change' and 'Consequences.' Without The City Lights exhibits a singer-songwriter who wears his influences on his sleeve, but doesn't slide into mimicry. After spending recent years as part of a duo or band, Reeb is stepping forward with a well thought out album of songs that should serve him well as a foundation of a new phase in his career." - Eric Banister, 2006

"Reeb's vocals take a starring role, and his sense of rhythm and dynamics in delivering his pensive and mature lyrics tend to betray his age of a mere 26 years.... Let's face it, Mike Reeb is good. I often wonder how these tunes might sound if Reeb bought himself a Les Paul and a vintage Fender combo, but it's a testament to the songwriting when the songs sound this good with just a quiet guitar and a steady voice. The Dylan-esque shuffle of 'Ease Up Or Give Up The Fight' works just as well as the quiet, Low-like harmony of 'Oxford Street.' Clearly, Reeb has found himself a formula that works. Lots of playing, lots of writing, lots of recording... lots of remembering those little bits of serendipity in between working hard and hardly working. Perhaps in our lives we don't pay enough attention to those short, barely noticeable intervals. Thankfully, Mike Reeb wrote them into a song... so maybe we can get a little bit of that back whenever we need it." - Chris Foresman, 2006

"If you thought Mike Reeb's 5 song Canvas EP was special, you will find his first full length project, Without the City Lights, just as transcending and transporting. You will feel like you are sitting with him as he pours out song after song on his touching heart-on-his-sleeve manner. Intimate and personal, lyrics of full losing in love, handling life and the issues thrown at us all. 'Oxford Street' (gives us the title of the album), 'June' and 'The Age In Our Hands' make the jump from the EP. Foggy and magical, thoughtful and melancholic, these remain some of Reeb's best songs. "Soft Spoken" opens the new set with much warmth and yearning, and Bethany Jones' violin solo pulls at the heart strings with an urgency that can bring tears. 'Consequences' sports a memorable melody, a necessary Jones' violin, and catchy word rhythms. Reeb's vocal is imaginative, spitting out the lyrics versus his usual manner of letting them roll of his mouth, giving the effect that he wants you to listen closely to this one. A perfect closer,'"Like A Wing' speaks of the peace that can be found in God’s love. All in all a very satisfying project, Reeb's bare-bones, true folk approach conjures visions of early Paul Simon and Dylan." - Bob Felberg, 2006

"It takes courage to perform live or in the studio with just the voice, guitar and the song. When the artists enters the studio for such an undertaking, it goes without the saying, the chances of commercial success are slim. Even Springsteen or Dylan's stripped down acoustic efforts sold far less than their other more adorned ventures. Why does an independent artist undertake this at age 27?

I would imagine, like Rilke once stated with respect to writing, because he has to. All That's Left by Chicago singer-songwriter, Mike Reeb is a seven song offering which brings us into the artists view of a world gone askew, but still aflame with the possibility of redemption. 'It's Been A Real Hard Year' opens to the door to this world with a weary poet summing up the events of a year of trial. There are no questions here. Just statements of facts. The personal transcends to the political scene and the hardship a nation faces in need of change. The song, 'Oh, We Need a Change,' takes us into a deeper look at the psyche of loss, separation in a marriage that is falling a part. The country, 'Like a Wing,' seeks to soothe the downtrodden with the universal hope of God's love that 'covers like a wing.' The music is necessarily spare, clear and straightforward. This keeps the focus on the song performance providing a sometimes unexpected intimacy. The trick with this kind of recording is to bring authenticity to a medium that largely uses digital process and synthetics in substitution for the raw, bare to the bone integrity presented here in this fine CD." - Terry Roland, 2008

"While there never seems to be a shortage of earnest singer-songwriters ever so blatantly brandishing their tattered hearts on their worn and weathered sleeves, there are a surprisingly few as thoughtful and talented as Mike Reeb. With songs like the Dylan-esque 'Ease Up Or Give Up The Fight,' the tender 'Oxford Street,' and the sarcastic, yet introspective 'Consequences,' it's entirely possible that with these and the rest of the songs off Without The City Lights, the Midwest can have their very own Bruce Springsteen." - Dean Ramos, 2007

"'It's been a real hard year.' That's what Mike Reeb sings on the first track of his latest release, All That's Left, but if the singer-songwriter keeps drawing positive reviews and kind comparisons to musical legends, he may be singing a different tune in the not-too-distant future. Names like Dylan and Springsteen are often thrown out too loosely when used to describe up-and-coming artists. In Reeb's case, however, the connections may be warranted." - Marc Thornton, 2008