A return to the music one chose to make early on can be like a return journey home. Not surprisingly then, guitarist Francois Vola can relate to that same scenario. His descriptively titled album, Back to Bluegrass, offers the French-born
Author: Lee Zimmerman
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Bluegrass Beyond Borders: Strengeplukk find their niche in Norway
The name Strengeplukk doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. However the same can’t be said for the music Strengeplukk’s been plying in their native Norway since 2015. Founded by Jakob Folke Ossum (guitar), Nikolai Storevik (fiddle), and Andreas B. Onarheim
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Footprints In A Song – Circa Blue
With their fine fifth album, West Virginia’s Circa Blue demonstrate once again why they’ve increasingly become the bluegrass band to watch over the course of the past several years. Adept in their arrangements and assured in their intents, the band
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Borrowed Tyme – Borrowed Tyme Band
It becomes very clear at the outset that the Borrowed Tyme Band have no interest in pushing the parameters. Their homespun harmonies and breezy homilies make it clear that they’re content to confine themselves to bluegrass’ traditional trappings, and recreating
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Nightflyer – Flight
Credit Nightflyer, a group of veteran musicians who hail from Southwestern Ohio, for finding the ideal compromise between that which is classic and contemporary. Taking their name from a Tony Rice song, the band — lead singer and guitarist Richard
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Bluegrass Beyond Borders: Albi & The Wolves push the parameters
The trio that refers to themselves as Albi & The Wolves could best be described as a band wholly guided by their instincts. Known in their native New Zealand for their energetic performances, verve, and variety, they make a point
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Front and Center – Sideline
Album title aside, the highly acclaimed North Carolina combo dubbed Sideline take an unassuming stance with their latest effort, a set of songs that offers an ideal example of bluegrass at its best. It says something that this six piece ensemble
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Long Ago – Jim and Lynna Woolsey
The aptly titled Long Ago is a celebration of sorts, one that marks the union of two talented bluegrass practitioners who have not only remained faithful to the form throughout their married life, but also well before. According to Jim
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Bluegrass Headquarters – Jussi Syren & The Groundbreakers
Finnish musician Jussi Syren and his band the Groundbreakers have been mining their music since 1995, not only emulating an authentic bluegrass sound but also mining it to the max under their own auspices. They’ve toured Europe and several states
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What Moves Mountains – Chicken Wire Empire
There’s something about Tom Petty’s sweet song Wildflowers that ensures the fact that no matter who covers it, or how many times one hears it, it’s bound to remain as indelible as ever. A great song stands up to any