Up The Hill And Through The Fog
Self-Released, 2022
9/10
Listen to Up The Hill And Through The Fog
The bluegrass wizards Darryl Poulsen, Adrian Gross and Frank Evans, i.e. The Slocan Ramblers, return with a dozen new tunes where Charles James handles bass and helps the band expand on their template with rich and uplifting song craft.
“I Don’t Know” starts the listen with a very warm and rhythmic display of bluegrass nods, nostalgic rock’n’roll and much melody, and “You Said Goodbye” continues with swift banjo acrobatics and flowing vocal harmonies as the moutain-esque fun glides with precision.
Approaching the middle, “Snow Owl” brings a bit of cautiousness to the agile instrumentation and intricate progressions of the instrumental, while “Platform Four” is a bit darker in nature and stripped back initially, before building into a glorious and dynamic meshing of guitar, mandolin and banjo.
Nearing the end, the poetic “The River Roaming Song” might be the best tune with its strong attention to rootsy and folk ideas, and “Bring Me Down Low” exits the listen with a blistering pace of time honored bluegrass songwriting that’s authentic, glorious and just so memorable.
A band who saw incredible highs in 2019 with a Juno Award Nomination, things took a drastic turn during the pandemic, which had Poulsen and Gross losing close family members and their bassist taking a step back from music.
Despite the tragedies, The Slocan Ramblers have made some of their best music to date here, and anyone with an ear for bluegrass, folk, roots, Americana and old time sounds will find much to enjoy from these Canadian luminaries.
Travels well with: Fireside Collective- Elements; Sideline- Breaks To The Edge