TROUT STEAK REVIVAL

TROUT STEAK REVIVAL
SPIRIT TO THE SEA

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Bluegrass fans in Colorado are certainly familiar with Trout Steak Revival. With three CDs under their belt, TSR list of accolades includes winning the 2014 Telluride Bluegrass Festival, picking up an Emmy for a soundtrack they contributed for a PBS show, and getting a nomination for IBMA Momentum Band Of The Year. Now, the progressive bluegrass quintet has fine-tuned its style on the Spirit To The Sea. Chris Pandolfi of the Infamous Stringdusters produced the project.

TSR creates a diverse blend of sounds as the multi-talented musicians swap roles singing lead vocal and harmonies throughout the album. Individually, Bevin Foley (fiddle), Steve Foltz (guitar and mandolin), Casey Houlihan (bass), William Koster (guitar and resonator guitar), and Travis McNamara (banjo and piano) bring a wealth of instrumental greatness to the 13 original tracks. As a unit, they put listeners in the room with them on songs such as the opener, “Last Chance.” The songwriting is superb, with colorful images created in songs such as “Fall At Your Feet” (Maple trees are changing, golden green to red / Colors painted, rising from my heart into my head / When I picture you there waiting in a dream, this sky explodes / From thunder into laughter until the frost falls on the road) and “I Am” (I’ve seen the diamonds covered in a neon light in wet pavement on the ground / I’ve seen the shadows chisel the mountainside when the sun is going down). They also dig down deeper into familiar topics of love, heartbreak, and freedom. The third time is charmed, as Trout Steak Revival takes its music to an even higher level. (www.troutsteak.com)BC