Reviews

Sometimes, when faced with an album the reviewer likes and appreciate the artistry involved, it is challenging to describe the work when it doesn’t really fit anywhere.  That’s the case with Indoor Vistas, the latest effort from Ethan Sherman.  From the stunning cover art to the first-class picking, it’s all enjoyable — but it doesn’t…

Joshua Rilko’s debut album, Lost Soul/Rock & Roll, is modern is all aspects of the word. It began as a Kickstarter project that exceeded the goal and has two distinctly different “sides” — one is bluegrassy and the other, while labeled “rock & roll,” really is more Americana-ish. A mandolin player, Rilko was formerly with…

Marcel Ardans is right up front about his new album, Traitor, which he refers to as “alternative bluegrass.”  Information with the album’s release states, “Marcel has no trouble abandoning bluegrass convention for the good of a song.” Ardans is best known for his YouTube channel “Lessons with Marcel” where he offers lessons in flatpicking guitar….

“Bluegrass makes the world better.” This is how Brian Wicklund, creator of the American Fiddle Method, welcomes you to his newly developed online courses, Bluegrass I and Bluegrass II.  Brian’s number one goal is to provide students with the tools to start jamming, now. He reminds us that jamming is a warm community of opportunity…

Ranch King Records Tim McDonald is originally from Virginia, an Army Veteran and graduate of the Armed Forces School of Music where he was mentored and befriended by Byron Berline and others.  After the Army, McDonald moved to Nashville where he has become a sought-after studio pianist, recording with artists Blake Shelton, Pam Tillis, Mark…

It’s obvious on Truman’s Ridge’s fifth album, Beyond the Ridge, that this group is having fun and comfortable in presenting their version of bluegrass. The regional band that mainly plays in the Midwest and down into Tennessee and Kentucky wears retro outfits complete with fedoras and gathers around a single mic at shows.  They refer…