Reviews

Barry Abernathy There’s a moving story behind the genesis of banjo ace Barry Abernathy’s first solo record, which, space-wise, can’t be told here. Suffice it to say, this exquisite release is a labor of love that has been several years in the making. The array of celebrated guest artists enlisted here is also a measure…

Dark Moon Hollow Equally rooted in the foundations of bluegrass and country music, much like their native Kentucky, is Lexington-based group Dark Moon Hollow. Their self-titled debut, released on Oct. 31, 2020, navigates between slow and somber bluegrass ballads to high-strung honky tonk. The 10-song effort recorded in the band’s hometown by Jason Groves at…

Alan Bibey & Grasstowne Alan Bibey, founding member of The New Quicksilver, IIIrd Tyme Out and Blue Ridge, has long been acknowledged as one of the most accomplished and influential mandolin players in bluegrass history. Not surprisingly, Bibey’s latest release with his band Grasstowne – Justin Jenkins on banjo, Zak McLamb on bass and vocals,…

Edited by Fred Bartenstein and Curtis W. Ellison Reviewed By Robert C. Buckingham University of Illinois Press The spread of bluegrass reflects the movement of populations from the poverty and adversity of the mountains to places with more opportunity. Southwestern Ohio, with its industrial economy, was one of these places. In a response to employment opportunities during…

Graber gryass Don’t say they didn’t warn you…The Facebook page for Graber Gryass lists the band as “Hard-hitting, joy-inducing original music and earth-bound bluegrass, acoustic psychedelic music from Memphis, TN. A collective joy-making machine. Astral yet rooted to the magnetic core.” After giving a listen to the group’s debut album, Late Bloom, it’s as good…

Picks and their various materials and shapes are debated endlessly in online instrument forums. One new entrant to that conversation is the Chris Thile Signature Mandolin Pick from D’Addario (#2CA7-01CT), which the bluegrass mandolin world has been giving a lot of positive chatter to lately. The standard triangle pick with rounded points is made from…