Nickel Creek

1	Ode to a Butterfly 4:08
2	The Lighthouse's Tale 5:01
3	Out of the Woods 5:19
4	House of Tom Bombadil 3:46
5	Reasons Why 4:08
6	When You Come Back Down 3:49
7	Sweet Afton 5:37
8	Cuckoo's Nest 2:19
9	The Hand Song 4:26
10	Robin and Marian 4:34
11	The Fox 2:30
12	Pastures New 3:53

Barnes & Noble

The new face of progressive bluegrass, Nickel Creek -- a trio that includes 24-year-old Sean Watkins (guitar), his 20-year-old sister Sara (fiddle), and 20-year-old Chris Thile (mandolin), with a big assist from Thile's father, Scott, an accomplished bassist -- goes way beyond the blue on its stunning debut, culling stylistic statements from folk, classical, pop, country, Celtic,and jazz (at a very minimum) and employing those elements adeptly over the course of a dozen mostly original songs that are by turns haunting and exhilarating. The band's producer is none other than Alison Krauss, and her touch is all over Nickel Creek, especially in the sustained dreamy ambience pervading each track -- this could well be a sequel to Krauss's own stark masterpiece, Forget About It. Fans of bracing, dexterous instrumental work will find a lot to chew on here, particularly in the album-opening "Ode to a Butterfly," which announces Nickel Creek's arrival in no uncertain terms, and in "In the House of Tom Bombadil," as Thile sets the pace with breathtaking mandolin variations on an Irish melody before giving way to equally bracing guitar and fiddle sorties from the Watkinses. Thile is a wonderful vocalist, too, his voice not a high lonesome bluegrass tenor but rather resembling the late British folksinger Nick Drake's fragile, searching instrument. Suffice it to say that Sara Watkins could be Krauss's vocal clone, and when she floats into her soft, crystalline upper register on a song such as the aching "Reasons Why," she touches the human heart in its deepest place. This happens with uncommon frequency on what sounds like an album for the ages. David McGee

All Music Guide

Few artists will offer the story of a lighthouse, sung in the first person, but Nickel Creek has a flair for the unusual. "The Lighthouse's Tale," is but one of a dozen good reasons to enjoy this self-titled release. Produced by Alison Krauss, it features an eclectic collection of material, original and borrowed. Highlights include the instrumentals "Ode to a Butterfly," "Robin and Marian," and "Pastures New." Perhaps most striking, though, are the evocative vocals, particularly on "Out of the Woods" and the band's cover of "When You Come Back Down" written by Tim O'Brien and Danny O'Keefe. Nickel Creek, the group and album, are altogether exhilarating. William Ashford