Chris Thile
How to Grow a Woman from the Ground
(Sugar Hill)
First Appeared in The Music Box, September 2006, Volume 13, #9
Written by John Metzger
Over the course of the past few years, Sean Watkins and Chris Thile have been
alternating solo releases that have made it readily apparent as to what each
brings to their primary outfit Nickel Creek. Watkins’ efforts, such as Blinders On
and 26 Miles, have been gently melodic, folk-pop
extravaganzas; while Thile’s projects, such as Deceiver and Live Duets,
have been decidedly more eclectic and adventurous. On his fifth solo outing
How to Grow a Woman from the Ground, Thile again proves that he’s willing to
try anything once. In tackling both The White Stripes’ Dead Leaves and the
Dirty Ground and The Strokes’ Heart in a Cage, he improbably converts
the former into a bucolic back porch romp and the latter into an easy-going
country ramble. Stripped of their ruggedness, neither track is wholly
successful, but each offers a delightful diversion from the rest of the
roots-oriented set. Elsewhere, Thile more convincingly tackles Jimmie Rodgers’
Brakeman’s Blues, but his own compositions — the jam-friendly
instrumentals Watch ’at Breakdown and The Beekeeper, each of which
features some of the album’s most intricately intertwined instrumentation, as
well as the beautiful devastation of You’re an Angel and I’m Gonna Cry —
are what serve as the collection’s highlights. Though there are a few tunes that
fall completely flat — most notably, Stay Away and I’m Yours If You
Want Me — the bulk of How to Grow a Woman from the Ground is
remarkably engaging. Not only is it Thile’s finest outing to date, but it also
compares quite favorably to Nickel Creek’s own canon.
How to Grow a Woman from the Ground is available
from Barnes & Noble. To order, Click Here!
Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2006 The Music Box