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Yonder Mountain String Band
Yonder Mountain String Band
(Vanguard)
First Appeared in The Music Box, May 2006, Volume 13, #5
Written by John Metzger
Those looking for a clue as to the direction that Yonder Mountain String Band
has taken with its new, self-titled effort need look no further than the label
on which it was released. Leaving its DIY work ethic behind, the collective
signed with the highly reputable Welk Music Group, but instead of issuing the
set through its folk- and bluegrass-oriented subsidiary Sugar Hill, as one might
have expected, the company relegated Yonder Mountain String Band’s fourth studio
endeavor to its pop-leaning Vanguard division. Considering that the ensemble not
only tapped veteran producer Tom Rothrock (Foo Fighters, Beck, Elliott Smith)
for assistance in sculpting the affair but that it also augmented its sound with
electric guitars and drums (the latter of which comes courtesy of Elvis
Costello’s associate Pete Thomas, no less), it’s safe to say that the eponymous
collection is a bit of a departure for the Colorado-based outfit.
Although banjo and mandolin still figure quite prominently within the group’s
music, it is abundantly clear that Yonder Mountain String Band has its eye on
reaching a much broader (and larger) audience. Both the arrangements and the
harmonies are tightly knit, and the collective’s newfound emphasis upon melody
pushes its songs ever closer towards radio-friendly, mainstream-minded fare.
Atmospheric echoes of U2 envelop the opening Sidewalk Stars, while How
’Bout You? offers a hybridization of the Dave Matthews Band and Son Volt.
Elsewhere, the group submerses itself within the southern-fried textures of the
Charlie Daniels Band (Angel), and frequently throughout the self-titled
endeavor, it imbues its folk rock with a mixture of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
and New Grass Revival. There’s no question that beneath the surface of its
material, Yonder Mountain String Band’s bluegrass heart still beats with a
vengeance, but while its rebirth as a pop-oriented outfit isn’t always
successful, its growth and maturity are readily apparent. 
Yonder Mountain String Band is
available from Amazon.com.
To order, Click Here!
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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
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