Reviews

JUNIOR SISK BRAND NEW SHADE OF BLUE Mountain Fever MFR 180608    At the end of 2017, rather than deal with personnel changes and reform his band, 2013 IBMA Male Vocalist Of The Year Junior Sisk decided to use this new album to refocus on the traditional music that first set his musical soul on fire….

FOLK MUSIC IN OVERDRIVE: A PRIMER ON TRADITIONAL COUNTRY AND BLUEGRASS ARTISTS—BY IVAN M. TRIBE—Univ. of Tenn. Press 9781621903970. Charles K. Wolfe Music Series, 392 pp., $29.95. (Univ. of Tenn. Press, 110 Conference Center, 600 Henley St., Knoxville, TN 37996, www.utpress.org.) The phrase “essential reading” might be overused these days, but this book deserves that…

CLAYBANK NO ESCAPE Mountain Fever MFR180427 Clean, fresh, hard-driving, traditional, great harmony, strong writing—all of these descriptions come to mind when hearing No Escape, the latest release from Claybank. Veteran bassist Gary Trivette has thrown in up-and-coming youngster Tyler Thompson (banjo) and two teenagers, Zack Arnold (mandolin) and Jacob Greer (guitar), and the result is flat-out…

NORTH COUNTRY LONELY TONIGHT No Label No Number North Country, one of the best-known bluegrass bands from the Northwest, has released a second project after some changes to the band’s lineup. Lonely Tonightfeatures a mix of originals mostly penned by bandmembers, as well as a couple of tunes from well-known performers to give a mix of…

THE VOGTS SISTERS BROKEN TIES No Label No Number This is a really nice project from sisters Abigail (guitar, mandolin, vocals) and Maggie (guitar, fiddle, vocals). The album of original material is produced simply with just the two ladies playing instruments and swapping lead and harmony vocals. Maggie composed most of the tunes and Abigail…

THE PRICE SISTERS A HEART NEVER KNOWS Rebel Records CD-1868    Bluegrass and old-time country has a lengthy history of famous brother duos. Whether named Louvin, Stanley, Osborne, Monroe, or McReynolds, the sound of two siblings singing close harmony defines a great part of what makes bluegrass so unique and compelling. The sound is so distinctive,…