(no subject)
A few months ago I managed to track down the solo debut albums of Nickel Creek members Chris Thile and Sean Watkins (Sara Watkins is working on her's). I enjoyed them, but I was surprised that given how talented they both are as song writers, that Thile's was ALL instrumentals and Watkin's only had one song with a vocal track - and it wasn't even HIM (it was friend Glen Phillips on "Let it Fall", for which the album is named). I rarely listened to either of them while I was on my vacation because I generally only would listen to ANYTHING unless I was driving, and that was time for me to sing along and try to rehabilitate my voice.
For the last week or so, I've given "Not All Who Wonder Are Lost" and "Let it Fall" additional listens and I can't get over how amazing they are. Some are traditional pieces, some are originals, but it's the type of music that can take you to different places and make you wish you played guitar, mandolin, violin, or even banjo. Thile's "Raining at Sunset" practically weaves a Thomas Kincaid painting into your mind. Watkin's "Nostalgia" might bring you back to a time in your childhood when your parents were taking you to visit one of their cousins in a rustic area you might not have been before. While I love cranking the live version of the song "Let it Fall" as loud as I can and sing along, the studio version captures it's wistful hopes of putting the past behind and wiping the slate clean with someone deeply cared about. "Sinai to Canaan" has two parts on "Not all Who Wonder" and both make it clear how important the journey is.
Their follow up albums hint without much subtlety one of the reasons Nickel Creek has decided to take a break. Sean's "With Blinder's On" continues in the alternative direction that "Why Should the Fire Die" goes into - and at full throttle - it's a great album but in a much different vein than "Let it Fall", complete with electric guitar and distortion. "How to Grow a Woman From the Ground" shows Chris' traditionalist leaning, diving head first into bluegrass and paves the way for his new group "Punch Brothers" - also good fun.
Remember the cartoons where the greedy but lovable duck finds a buried treasure and swims in the gold and jewels - that's how I feel when I listen to their first two. It's like a cathartic baptism each and every time.
For the last week or so, I've given "Not All Who Wonder Are Lost" and "Let it Fall" additional listens and I can't get over how amazing they are. Some are traditional pieces, some are originals, but it's the type of music that can take you to different places and make you wish you played guitar, mandolin, violin, or even banjo. Thile's "Raining at Sunset" practically weaves a Thomas Kincaid painting into your mind. Watkin's "Nostalgia" might bring you back to a time in your childhood when your parents were taking you to visit one of their cousins in a rustic area you might not have been before. While I love cranking the live version of the song "Let it Fall" as loud as I can and sing along, the studio version captures it's wistful hopes of putting the past behind and wiping the slate clean with someone deeply cared about. "Sinai to Canaan" has two parts on "Not all Who Wonder" and both make it clear how important the journey is.
Their follow up albums hint without much subtlety one of the reasons Nickel Creek has decided to take a break. Sean's "With Blinder's On" continues in the alternative direction that "Why Should the Fire Die" goes into - and at full throttle - it's a great album but in a much different vein than "Let it Fall", complete with electric guitar and distortion. "How to Grow a Woman From the Ground" shows Chris' traditionalist leaning, diving head first into bluegrass and paves the way for his new group "Punch Brothers" - also good fun.
Remember the cartoons where the greedy but lovable duck finds a buried treasure and swims in the gold and jewels - that's how I feel when I listen to their first two. It's like a cathartic baptism each and every time.