Well-known for their International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) wins for the band and individual members (mandolinist Darren Nicholson, bass/dobro player Tim Surrett and Grammy Winning banjo picker Marc Pruett), Balsam Range is now back with FIVE to follow-up last year’s IBMA Album of the Year Papertown. And what a strong follow-up it is. The album kicks off with the lead single “Moon Over Memphis” and instanty showcases why the band is so revered in the Bluegrass and Roots music scene (and why they often play with John Driskell Hopkins of the Zac Brown Band). The band records and/or writes quality songs.
There’s a rootsy elegance to each of the tracks on FIVE that showcases homespun harmonies and traditional values on tracks like “Chasing Someone Else’s Dreams,” “The Future’s Not What It Used To Be,” and the choice covers of “Matthew” and “Everything That Glitters (Is Not Gold).” The band’s virtuosity as musicians is showcased on the fine instrumental “Backdraft (You Light It, You Fight It)” and vocal virtuosity on the gospel tune “Stacking Up The Rocks.”
It’s clear that mainstream fans may not dig what Balsam Range offers on FIVE (nor will they on most Bluegrass or traditional country songs) but for those of us who dig all the shades of the Country Music coloring book, we’ll certainly want to be adding this album to our collection of albums to listen to over and over again.
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