With passion for progressive bluegrass alongside other styles of music like contemporary pop, Connecticut-based On the Trail has quickly made waves for their creativity and explorations outside of the typical acoustic realm. The group’s first full length album, Where Do We Go From Here, displays the lyrical power contained within this unit. All but one of the eleven tracks were written within the band.
The opening track, What Do I Need With Love, was written by guitarist Charlie Widmer. This particular piece is a stunning example of Widmer’s robust, emotional vocals. Along with Widmer, On the Trail also consists of Tom Polizzi on mandolin, guitar, and vocals, Matt Curley on bass and vocals, and Austin Scelzo on fiddle and vocals.
Gospel Plow, the sole traditional song on this recording, is sung by Austin Scelzo. Like Widmer, he also has a strong voice. With one exception, the bulk of the lead vocals are split between Widmer and Scelzo. This particular song is extremely well suited for Austin’s voice.
On the Fence, an instrumental by Tom Polizzi demonstrates his clean, articulate approach to the mandolin, very much in the vein of Chris Thile. The following track Lead Me Back Again, was written by Polizzi as well, and features him on lead vocals. Though not as dynamic of a singer as Widmer and Scelzo, the lyrics tell a nice story of encouragement and perseverance in the midst of difficult times.
Other tracks such as Better Days and Help Me demonstrate the smoother side of Widmer’s vocals. The former by Widmer tells a story of reminiscing about romantic times and missing the person they shared them with, while the latter by Polizzi talks of a couple struggling within their relationship.
On The Trail by Widmer is a really fun, upbeat track with great call and response lyrics. If this isn’t the band’s theme song by now, it should be!
The title track, Where Do We Go From Here, closes out the album. Written by Scelzo, this song chronicles an emotional journey of picking up the pieces at the end of a romantic chapter in life. The shifts in tempo particularly capture the emotional ups and downs of this process. Some excellent banjo playing is featured here, but unfortunately it’s uncredited.
Where Do We Go From Here is a spellbinding release. With powerful vocalists and strong original material, On the Trail has the necessary ingredients to reach even greater heights. The band’s name sums up exactly where they are on their journey.
