Written
by Montey Zike, posted by blog admin
The
gradual evolution of a band, free from commercial pressures, is a fascinating
thing. Cranford Hollow works in a style that isolates them from the need to
score mainstream attention, not that it isn’t warranted, in order to turn a
profit and justify their continued existence. Instead, they’ve built their well
earned reputation on the backs of sterling live work and a commitment to
producing albums reflective of where they are at a given point in their lives
and musical journeys. The latest album from this South Carolina based five
piece, Color/Sound/Renew/Revive, is a powerful reminder of what results
following your Muse can produce. It’s a relatively brief recording, tallying
only eight songs, but the band explores such a diverse array of sonic and
stylistic identities over the course of this collection that they scarcely resemble
the shit-kicking, whiskey-drinking four piece they began their run as. Instead,
they have become so much more.
Color/Sound/Renew/Revive
gets off to an impressive start with the track “Songfield”. John Cranford, the
band’s lead singer and primary songwriter, still has the whiskey and nicotine
wrecked grit. His lyrical contributions to the album reflect how his
development at a writer has reached a stage where he seems completely freed to
write about a variety of subjects with a mix of artfulness, suggestiveness, and
specificity few of his contemporaries can hope to match. “Songfield” is
uniquely the band’s own. The second track, “Long Shadows”, showcases the
talents of the band’s fiddle player, Eric “Thunder” Reid, and his darkly
lyrical playing is an important key to the song’s impact on the audience. There’s
a more traditional bent to the album’s third track “Bury It Down”. The steady
jangle of acoustic guitars and relaxed drumming are nicely punctuated by Yannie
Reynecke’s bluesy and often blistering lead guitar lines. This is one of the
most soulful moments on Color/Sound/Renew/Revive and John Cranford’s vocal has
the same grit we heard before coupled with a surprising amount of sweet musicality.
There’s
a much more current musical atmosphere surrounding “North” and it opens with a
voice-over recording of a President John Kennedy speech. Naturally, Eric Reid’s
presence means it remains wisely tethered to the band’s country/bluegrass
roots, but the compelling groove provided by the drumming and Reynecke’s
evocative swells of electric guitar give it a little added moodiness. They
might surprise some with including an instrumental track as the album’s
penultimate number, but “Dark Turns” doesn’t miss vocals and carries itself
quite nicely on an album filled with eloquent lyrical excursions. It makes for
an interesting pairing with the song “Swing” and Cranford Hollow truly captures
the spirit of the song title without ever veering too far afield of the band’s
musical wheelhouse. Cranford Hollow have arrived where they are with utter
honesty. This is a band whose creative vision is organically shaped rather than
resulting from market pressure. Despite their growing distance from traditional
Americana, Cranford Hollow still embody the form’s strongest aspects and show
no signs of slowing growth or stagnation.
Grade:
A
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