Reviews

Kristina Gaddy, a Baltimore-based writer and fiddler, has written exactly the book the banjo world needs right now. She explores questions that many among us, including myself, have been asking since the turbulent summer of 2020, including, “Why was it that an instrument constantly described as ‘Black’ and ‘African’ came to be thought of as…

Since a bunch of hippies first got together in 1974 and started the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Colorado had proved to be a fertile breeding ground for progressive-bluegrass bands, with a multitude of forward thinking-groups including Hot Rize, Leftover Salmon, Yonder Mountain String Band, Elephant Revival, and countless others emerging from the Rocky Mountains.  Trout Steak…

This Georgia-based family band, which seems and sounds like a fundamentalist Christian version of the legendary Trapp Family, has an interesting back story. Husband Jon (lead singer and bass player) and wife Marina (fiddle and harmony vocals) Linblom are classically trained musicians who first moved south about 20 years ago to take positions with the…

During the pandemic, when most bands and artists were off the road, the folks at Mountain Home Music put the downtime to good use.  Drawing on solo artists and various band members from their talent roster—The Lonesome River Band, The Traveling McCourys, The Grascals, The Infamous Stringdusters, Sideline, Zoe & Cloyd, among others—producer Jon Weisberger…

Reviewed by Dale and Darcy Cahill On August 5th Adhyaropa Records released Jacob Jolliff’s newest album entitled the Jacob Jolliff Band. Jolliff hit the bullseye with this album. Possibly most famous for playing a little bit left of center with his progressive and complex mandolin instrumentals, with this album Jolliff returns to his bluegrass roots. …

Seemingly every review and article about Minnesota’s Trampled by Turtles attempts to explain how they bridge the divide between rock and roots, crafting music laden with their punk sensibilities but delivered with a bluegrass lean.  All of that is true, but limits who Trampled by Turtles really is and what they do as a band…