Bird in a Houseby Anonymous
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October 08, 2003:
Jamgrass music is turning a lot of heads these days, with its eclectic sounds that blend bluegrass and rock music. This mutated hybrid genre is building a large fan base, although some feel that many mu-grass bands and practitioners have yet to really deliver a signature sound. Railroad Earth, on the other hand, is a relatively new band fronted by Todd Sheaffer that is demonstrating some of the strongest songwriting, vocals, and instrumental pyroclastics to hit the jamgrass scene in quite some time. Their music has infused some new life into a genre that seemed to be getting rather tedious. Presumably this band takes their name from the Jack Kerouac poem "October in the Railroad Earth," an uplifting piece that begins with a meticulous description of a mad street scene. As Kerouac starts to hallucinate, one realizes their own place in the universe. Like Kerouac's free-blowing improvisational writing style, Railroad Earth's music is also visionary. Railroad Earth is comprised of musicians who once played in various Pennsylvania and Western New Jersey bands until they realized they shared common musical interests and came together. Lead singer/guitarist Todd Sheaffer was a founding member, front man and primary songwriter for the band, From Good Homes, who recorded for RCA and frequently opened for Ratdog. Fiddler Tim Carbone and multi-instrumentalist/banjo-player Andy Goessling were both founding members of The Blue Sparks from Hell, who toured the eastern seaboard for years to packed houses. Mandolinist John Skehan played, toured and recorded with a number of bluegrass and rock bands over the past few years. New Yorker Carey Harmon played drums and percussion with the regional touring band, The Hour. The youngest member of the group is 22-year-old Dave Von Dollen, upright bass player, who was enlisted right out of the New School where he was studying jazz. After a few rehearsals, Railroad Earth recorded a 5-song live demo that soon got them tours and engagements at such prestigious music festivals as the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival and High Sierra Music Festival. They expanded this demo recording to a full highly-acclaimed album project called The Black Bear Sessions. This brings us to the present, and the buzz continues to swirl around this charismatic band. Railroad Earth has a Sugar Hill recording contract and the national release of their sophomore album, "Bird in a House" is due for national release on June 4, 2002. This album shows strong bluegrass influences, but Railroad Earth also folds in other tasty textural ingredients from Celtic, jazz, folk, and rock music on a 13-track original project where all but two songs run for 4-7 minutes apiece. Bird in a House begins with a raucous "Drag Him Down," which to my ears is slightly cluttered and could've been mixed a little cleaner. The album's title cut, an introspective Grateful Dead-like piece, follows and offers some flowing fiddle playing from Tim Carbone. Then, the train settles onto the tracks and pulls the listener into their musical groove. Another Sheaffer original, Like a Buddah, gets you feeling good and smiling just like the enlightened sage himself. "Pack a Day" is an up-tempo instrumental with a few interesting twists and turns along the way. "Mountain Time" slows the pace and tells a dreamy story of good feelings experienced living on mountain time, between the...
Bird in a Houseby Anonymous
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October 15, 2002:
I definitely thought this was a good album when I started listening. And each time I listened it got better and better. Now after about 50,000 listens to this album I am convinced it's a classic! Why can't I stop listening to this album????? ;)
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