To Live In Two Worlds Volume 2
Mountain Home, 2020
8/10
Listen to To Live In Two Worlds Volume 2
The prolific songwriter Thomm Jutz returns with his 2nd album of the year, and much like Volume 1, it’s full of imaginative storytelling guided by Jutz’s sturdy pipes and creative guitar playing as well as a top notch string band.
“The Flood of 2010” starts the listen with Jutz’s soothing pipes alongside warm vocal harmonies and banjo acrobatics that make an impression on the soft bluegrass opener, and “Throw The Stone” follows with much attention to atmosphere amid the reflective display of sublime, organic beauty.
There’s 14 tracks present here, and Jutz keeps our attention all the way through with a varied delivery that includes the gentle balladry of “East Kentucky Blues”, where a timeless folk quality enters the bare setting, while the vocally strong “Evening Prayer Blues (Revisited)” illustrates Jutz’s intricate guitar picking and cozy singing in an indeed bluesy template. “Something About A Sunset”, one of the record’s best, then recruits a nearly orchestral feel as gorgeous vocal harmonies linger long after the song ends.
Near the end, “Adios Boys” is another sparse execution of stirring song craft, and the solo version of “The Flood Of 2010” exits the listen with just as much impact as the full band version, only this time we get the entire scope of Jutz’s singing and exceptional guitar work.
Though Jutz handles the bulk of the instrumentation here, he is accompanied by Mike Compton (mandolin), Mark Fain (bass), Justin Moses (dobro, banjo, vocals), and Tammy Rogers (fiddle, vocals), and together they produce some fine and rootsy sounds that resonate as great today as they will decades from now.
Travels well with: Eric Brace & Last Train Home- Daytime Highs & Overnight Lows; Balsam Range- The Gospel Collection