Ups, Downs And No Name Towns
Mountain Home, 2021
9/10
Listen to Ups, Downs And No Name Towns
An outfit with some of the best pickers out there today, Sideline are back with a dozen new bluegrass tunes, and they’re delivered flawlessly on Ups, Downs And No Name Towns, where the sextet are in fine form and play off each others strengths superbly.
“Marshalville” starts the listen with soaring vocals alongside fluid string prowess that’s indebted to timeless bluegrass sounds, and “Just A Guy In A Bar” follows with a calmer approach of soothing, emotive songwriting that benefits from lovely vocal harmonies.
Further into the listen, the chunky banjo of “When The Son Rose Up That Morning” brings a gospel angle to Skip Cherryholmes’ slide guitar amid the warm climate, while “Newton Grove” moves swiftly with string acrobatics thanks to agile mandolin, fiddle and guitar in the stunning instrumental. “Miner’s Song”, one of the album’s best, then brings no lack of melody to the dynamic instrumentation that’s just so charming and meticulous.
Deeper still, “Old Guitar Case” flows with a cautious folk spirit that’s full of reflective songwriting, and “Fast As I Can Crawl” exits the listen with a playful, precise and stunning execution of glowing vocal harmonies and sublime string manipulation that clearly illustrates just why Sidelines are so widely revered.
An album that was put together during the shutdowns of 2020, Sideline were forced to work in ways previously unexplored, and there were indeed ups and downs along the way. Never ones to shy away from a challenge, they band persevered, and it makes for one of the most musically elaborate in their catalog, which is no easy feat.
Travels well with: Balsam Range- Moxie And Mettle; Chuck Wagon Gang- Radio Days