Reviews

Claw hammer banjo player Brad Kolodner has long been a spark plug on the old-timey-Celtic music scene. He’s toured and recorded extensively with his father, Ken, founder of the ground-breaking band Helicon. Brad is also a founder of the acoustic roots quintet Charm City Junction. For his latest outing, an all-instrumental collection of kick-up-your heels…

This accomplished band was founded by three alumni of the final line-up of Doyle Lawson’s Quicksilver: Jerry Cole, Eli Johnston and Stephen Burwell.   Most of the song choices here are utterly familiar: “Let It Snow,” “Holly Jolly Christmas,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” etc. But the results are…

If there’s a complaint to be made about the Steep Canyon Rangers’ 2021 live album North Carolina Songbook, it’s that it was too short. At eight songs, the album covered a range of artists from Thelonious Monk to James Taylor to Ben E. King to Doc Watson. It met rave reviews and was nominated for…

Members of the Southwest Bluegrass All-Stars are: banjo master Bill Evans, a recipient of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize; New Mexico-based  bass player Anne Luna; Austin songwriter Elliott Rogers, who’s worked with the likes of Lyle Lovett and Nanci Griffith and the Alan Munde Gazette; and Steve Smith, a New Mexico-based mandolinist extraordinaire, who has…

Cast Iron was formed in 2019 and calls the Ashville, North Carolina area home. The members include Nick Dauphinais (mandolin), Andrew Blythe (banjo), Rob Sine (guitar), and Celia Millington-Wyckoff (bass), and for this project they have included fiddler James Schlender.  The band’s pedigrees include stints with Mountain Faith, Larry Stephenson Band, Blue Wheel Drive, Whetstone…

Jason Hannan is originally from Mississippi, but resides in Frederick, Maryland, where he is a singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, and has played with several D.C. area groups like Clear Spring, Crop Dusters, and others. He plays guitar, mandolin, and bass, and he is joined on this project by his wife, Michelle Hannan (vocals, harmonica), Howard…