The 23 String Band - Catch 23

The 23 String Band - Catch 23
2011, The 23 String Band

Eastern Kentucky is the home base ofThe 23 String Band, an acoustic quintet consisting of Chris Shouse (guitar,lead vocals); Curtis Wilson (banjo, vocals); David Howard (mandolin, vocals);Scott Moore (fiddle, vocals) and T. Martin Stam (bass, vocals). In spite oftheir acoustic approach, the band brings electric energy to modern songs withtraditional bluegrass stylings. A live set from The 23 String Band could easilyfollow a traditional bluegrass tune with a Beastie Boys cover; theunpredictable nature of the band has earned them a significant following in ashort time. And their "original hillbilly music" has earned them therespect of bluegrass fans both modern and traditional. The band released Catch23 earlier this year. The only surprise here is that they haven't receivedwider acclaim.

Catch 23 opens with "Fat Frankie", the frenetic tale of asmall time drug dealer. The dark and urgent modern bluegrass arrangement iscompelling, and The 23 String Band has created a classic story song. The violinwork of Scott Moore is particularly amazing. "Long Hot Summer Days"features solid, deliberate pick work. Shouse gets soulful on the lead vocal,and there's a distinct blues feel blended into the bluegrass arrangement."Catch 23" is a dynamic instrumental that breaks out into a jazzifiedbreakdown. Once again, fiddler Scott Moore is a standout. The band is forwardand fun on "Leave Everything To Me", an amusing little love song witha memorable melody.

"Listen To Her Heart" is asoliloquy sung to a romantic interloper; an attempt to hold on to the one heloves. The arrangement here is pure gold, with tremendous instrumentalinterplay and absolutely gorgeous vocal harmonies intertwining throughout. The23 String Band goes old school on "Bees Knees", getting back to deepbluegrass roots so completely you'll think you're in a time warp. "HeyPretty Mama" is a tongue-in-cheek come-on song that's fun andentertaining. It's followed by the vibrant instrumental clinic of "DeerTick". It's the barrelhouse for "Raleigh & Spencer", aprohibition era fiddle tune that's relentlessly entertaining. The band getsreal props for their original read on "Cripple Creek", in a renditionthat's vaguely reminiscent of the Grateful Dead's version, but has a more lyricfeel.

The 23 String Band are a marketer'sdream. Riding the high energy of youth, this finely tuned musical machineapproaches traditional bluegrass with great reverence, but can also kick outthe jams and update their sound to the minute. With the rise of Americana musicas an over-arching pop form, it's a matter of time before a band from its ranksbreaks out into pop-culture stardom. That band could easily be The 23 StringBand, and Catch 23 could be just the vehicle to take them there.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about The 23 String Bandat www.the23stringband.com or www.facebook.com/the23stringband.

Source: http://wildysworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/23-string-band-catch-23.html

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