Rob Giles pulls into the Meditation Drive-thru in his reflective and rewarding new album — premiering exclusively on Tinnitist.
Gently healing, tastefully understated, casually confident and brimming with classic singer-songwriter sophistication reminiscent of ’70s icons like Cat Stevens — artfully updated with contemporary sonics and production — the dusty-voiced troubadour’s fifth album marks a triumphant return after a period of silence. With its soul-stirring melodies, thought-provoking lyrics, and Rob’s newfound clarity and authenticity, this musical voyage is a testament to the enduring power of creativity and the tenacity of the human spirit.
Not bad for someone who was done with music. After releasing four albums of his own, a few more that were lost in record label shuffles, a handful with other artists (including Andy Summers of The Police) — not to mention serving as a producer/co-writer for Lisa Loeb, Sara Ramirez and countless others — he walked offstage at a sold-out show at the Troubadour in L.A. and just… stopped.
He didn’t post about it on social media and didn’t tell his friends. He never mentioned to anyone that he thought his voice had been damaged beyond repair, and didn’t see any doctors about the fact he couldn’t sing for more than a minute without pain and a significant loss of range. He just knew it was time to be done as a professional musician.
Then, years later, when a friend completed radiation and chemotherapy, he asked how she wanted to celebrate. She said “I need another Rob Giles record.” He thought of telling her, “I can’t even sing and haven’t written a song in years, literally.” Yet he knew she was right. Three months later, he had finished Meditation Drive-thru, 11 eclectic songs about making the most out of what you have. About rebuilding from handfuls of sand. About singing when your voice is gone.
The first single Tears into Art was the first song he finished. It showed him he could and should keep going. The lyric is a reminder to himself of the magic he had witnessed and the things he had overcome in a life of profound personal losses. “I knew this song was a gift of clarity for me,” he says. “That I could still write and sing, which I truly didn’t know if I could. I didn’t sing in the car or shower for years. Even singing Row Your Boat to my kids at bedtime physically hurt and it felt challenging to hit the notes. When I did, it came out gravelly, pitchy, like I was singing through someone else’s body I had just inhabited. It wasn’t ever good, so I just stopped trying.
“When I agreed to make a new record, everything changed. I just agreed with, like, my higher self or some muse or riding on my friends’ belief that I would write and record and do my best and it would be enough. And like a fairy godmother waved a wand, everything just worked, like the past handful of years was a bad dream. And in a lot of ways, it was. But the support I didn’t have in previous relationships was in my past, the new friends and love and support I had found in the new life I’ve been building was all in place for me to just be myself.
“To just open my heart and my mouth and, without any concern for the results or even planning on releasing this as an album — really not even sure I could finish an album — it all fell so easily into place that it made me question how I had made, like, hundreds of records for all those years. Ease, comfort, first and second takes, just laughing with my friend Rich Jacques until somehow another song was done. Like one a day. Boom. Easy. We didn’t question anything, we just kept doing the next indicated step, and in no time we were done, and really proud. I felt healed and more myself than I have in many years.”
Check out Meditation Drive-thru below, watch the video for Tears Into Art above, and follow Rob Giles on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
