“I’ve been listening to the new albums from Bon Iver and Gillian Welch. Anyone familiar with Bon Iver knows that Justin Vernon has one hell of a voice, but what really stands out on this album is the range of sound on the songs. I’m impressed with anyone who can close his album with an ’80s power ballad and actually pull it off. I don’t think Gillian Welch and her collaborator, David Rawlings, are capable of writing a bad song. Their voices blend so beautifully together, and the songwriting is always strong. You won’t be treated to any ’80s synths or musical left turns on their new album, The Harrow & The Harvest, but the bare-bones instrumentation, accompanied by the voices of Welch and Rawlings, doesn’t need to be tampered with.”
(Andrew Shepard & the Roadkill Ghost Choir headline Hillbilly Humpdays Wednesday, July 27 at Will’s Pub with Sweet Chariots, the Groves and Zap Dragon & the Attack. Admission is $6.)
