Litha

Is this the first time in almost four years of Fiddlefreak reviews that I’ve let an entire month pass without a post? Gack! So here we go with the first review of 2012, and by God it was worth the wait. Scotland’s Aaron Jones and his partner Claire Mann make up half of a brillant new Celtic-German group called Litha. They just released their new record with an official launch at Glasgow’s huge annual music festival Celtic Connections.

Dancing of the Light (on Artes Records) contains 8 songs and 6 instrumentals from Scotland, Ireland and Germany that range from introspective contemporary folk to raging sets of traditional jigs and reels. Words cannot express the beauty evoked by Litha in this brilliant release. With excellent choice of material, impeccable performances, and exquisite production values, this is a master work of artistic creativity and execution.

Litha did not spring to life fully formed. In fact, the quartet released a previous album titled “Until the Cows Come Home” under the moniker of 2Duos. From the band’s website:

The 2Duos started out as a collaboration between Claire Mann and Aaron Jones from Scotland and Gudrun Walther and Jürgen Treyz from Germany. Although initially 2Duos started out as an experimental collaboration, we enjoyed playing and touring together so much that we decided to take the ‘project’ further and form a permanent band with a new name. ‘Litha’ is an old Anglo-Saxon word for the month of June, the time of light and the summer solstice celebrations. The band first met at Wimborne Folk Festival in England during the height of the summer in 2006 and so Litha felt like the perfect name for the band.

Dancing of the Light

Litha consists of Gudrun Walther (accordion, fiddle, vocals), Claire Mann (flute, fiddle, whistles, vocals), Jürgen Treyz (guitar, dobro, vocals), and Aaron Jones (bouzouki, guitar, vocals). Jürgen did all engineering, mixing, and mastering, and the band did all its own arranging and production for Dancing of the Light. Simply amazing.

LISTEN: Rosie´s Reels

LISTEN: Gypsy

LITHA WEBSITE

LISTEN/BUY

Rita Hosking. Courtesy Rik Keller Photography

It makes old Fiddlefreak proud that his adopted home state can produce an artist of this caliber. Rita Hosking is a singer-songwriter from Northern California whose music falls into a very sweet spot: nestled comfortably between folk, country, and bluegrass (previously reviewed here). Her new record Burn expands and builds upon previous releases by adding a little more rock swagger and alt-country twang to her solid acoustic foundation.

Burn

Rita’s on the rise! From the demolition derby to Hazel Dickens, the rusty and ragged landscape of Ritaland is the real America. Check her out. (Bonus video: campground jam at Strawberry Music Festival! Is that Joe Craven in the back?)

LISTEN: Something You Got

LISTEN: My Golden Bull

Rita Hosking Website (Listen/Buy)

Alison Krauss & Union Station

The new record from smoothgrass icons Alison Krauss & Union Station, titled Paper Airplane (Rounder Records), will hit the streets on April 12, 2011. Fans of Krauss will recognize her usual band of all-star pickers and distinctive vocal style. The players are Jerry Douglas (Dobro, lap steel, vocals), Dan Tyminski (guitar, mandolin, lead vocal), Ron Block (banjo, guitar) and Barry Bales (bass, vocals), with Krauss on lead vocal and fiddle. Throughout this record, they maintain a folky, vintage groove that’s not overproduced.

LISTEN: Paper Airplane

Apparently this was not an easy record to make. At one point the recording sessions came to a dead stop when, for just the second time in her life, Krauss was hammered by a bout of migraine headaches. “There have been records that were tough to make, but this one took the cake,” she says. “I make judgments based on how something makes me feel, and because I wasn’t physically well, everything was kind of gray and nothing sounded right. So after we recorded a bunch of things, we took a long break, because it just wasn’t working.”

The Making of Paper Airplane

The record “…represents a trial—like a trying time that has an end,” she explains. “And that’s what everything was to me on this record, including Dustbowl Children,” written by Peter Rowan and sung by Dan Tyminski. “It’s all about a span of time that’s a trial. We didn’t pick that as a theme; we found out what the theme was afterward. Whatever formula we thought there was doesn’t exist. It disappeared, especially this last time out.” (On a side note, Tyminski’s voice was used for George Clooney‘s singing of “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” in the film “Oh Brother Where Art Thou.”)

Paper Airplane Music Video

Paper Airplane

If (like Fiddlefreak) you’re getting burned out on the predictable formula of modern bluegrass music, check out the beautifully austere and poignant Paper Airplane from Alison Krauss & Union Station.

Alison Krauss Website

Preorder on Amazon

Preorder on iTunes

Visit iTunes to pre-order Paper Airplane and receive an instant download of the title track. With your pre-order you will also get an exclusive song, “These Days” when you receive your full download upon album release on April 12, 2011.

Cahalen Morrison and Eli West

Here’s another sweet new record that has come to Fiddlefreak by way of Devon at Hearth Music. The Holy Coming of the Storm from Cahalen Morrison and Eli West hit the streets on January 30 and has been stuck in my CD player ever since. Their new old-time bluegrass songs strike just the right balance between contemporary honesty and traditional roots. Their complete mastery of the stringed axes they wield (banjo, guitar, bouzouki, dobro) ensures that they cut to the chase just as surely as an old-style two-man crosscut saw. They’ve garnered praise from Dirk Powell and support from prestigious booking agents in Europe. Give a listen, you’ll see why.

The Holy Coming of the Storm

LISTEN: My Lover, Adorned

LISTEN: I’ll Not Be A Stranger

Storm was recorded live at Aaron Youngberg’s Swingfingers Studio (Ft. Collins, CO) in Sept 2010, and produced by newgrass wizkid Matt Flinner. Includes the bass skills of Eric Thorin, fiddle of Ryan Drickey, mandolin, bouzouki, and tenor guitar of Matt Flinner, and banjo of Aaron Youngberg. Eli plays guitar, bouzouki, clawhammer, and Cahalen plays clawhammer, bouzouki, guitar, mandolin and lap slide.

LISTEN/BUY

ARTIST WEBSITE

Take Me Home

If I lived in Cruz I probably would have seen the Abott Family playing bluegrass on the street before now. But it wasn’t until about a week ago that I stumbled upon the Abbott Family website and their Web TV series (I was looking for some lyrics).  It’s worth exploring, especially the amazing collection of old-time song lyrics with an MP3 clip of each song, for those of us who play music by ear.

But this post is about Luke’s new record, a soulful and authentic collection of classic old-time Americana played on guitar, banjo, fiddle, viola, and dobro. With this release, an amazing young whippersnapper rises through the ranks to stand with the very best modern performers of old-time music. Under the obvious influence of the Holy Trinity (Bruce Molsky, Dirk Powell, and Tim O’Brien), Luke shows us that not only does he know his axes inside and out, but his voice is a powerful asset and he’s not afraid to use it. The packaging and his website include ample liner notes on each track. Fiddlefreak recommended!

LISTEN: I’ve Always Been a Rambler  (MP3)

LISTEN: Goin’ Across the Sea / Angeline (MP3)

Luke Abbott Website

Preview/Buy Take Me Home

The Toneway Project

Abbotty Video Blog