Greensky Bluegrass
If Sorrows Swim
Big Blue Zoo

www.greenskybluegrass.com
 

I popped this latest release from Michigan-based Greensky Bluegrass into iTunes, sank back into my chair to listen, and was about a third of the way through the disc when a feeling of disconnect came over me, a realization that the lyrics I was hearing had no apparent relation to the song titles as I was following along. I’m not particularly averse to the eclectic side of things, but things just weren’t adding up. A quick investigation revealed that the track sequence as shown in iTunes was reversed from what was shown on the inside of the CD cover. Compounding the confusion, the tracks are also listed on the back cover, but in reverse order from top to bottom, and one suspects that whoever entered the information into the Gracenote database did not catch that subtlety. This is ultimately not the fault of the band or the label, however, a second listen through also revealed that, at least on the copy submitted for review, tracks 9 and 10 (“Wings For Wheels” and “Demons”, respectively, actually were reversed on the disc. I mention this not as a “gotcha” or other knock against the artists in any way, only to possibly avert some head-scratching and puzzlement among those who acquire the album either as a physical disc or as downloads. For those who happen to be DJs or other radio programming types, however, a word of warning: the opening track, “Windshield,” is not FCC-friendly.

Having dispensed with that public service announcement, however, and recognizing that my personal tastes in bluegrass run toward the Monroe-Stanley end of the spectrum, I found If Sorrows Swim to be a well-produced and well-performed effort, nicely balanced between vocal prowess and instrumental expertise. The band’s primary songwriters Paul Hoffman (mandolin) and Dave Bruzza (Guitar) give depth and dimension to their respective lead vocals on tunes like “Leap Year” (Hoffman) and “Kerosene” (Bruzza). By their own account, all five band members (Michael Arlen Bont on banjo, Michael DeVol on bass and Anders Beck on Dobro round out the crew) came to bluegrass through improvisational rock, and it shows. As the saying goes, it’s not your father’s bluegrass, and Greensky seems fairly representative of the increasing number of young bluegrass bands whose members have no experience of working on the farm or living in a cabin on the hill. If the lyrics seem a bit dark and moody at times, so be it, but keep in mind that the traditionalists in bluegrass and folk music in general have been celebrating murder ballads for centuries. At least, on If Sorrows Swim, no one dies.

So, post-production issues aside, this is not an album that will have the purists smiling and nodding approval, but it’s well-made and should speak volumes to the band’s fans and contemporaries.

— John Lupton