Blue Skies

Longtime band members Josh Shilling (guitar, piano and vocals) and Aaron Ramsey (mandolin, bass, vocals) have invited a few guests to record Mountain Heart's first album in five years. Jeff Partin (resophonic guitar, lap steel, bass), Seth Taylor (guitar, banjo, cajón) and five-time Grammy nominee Molly Cherryholmes (violin) are heard on ten tracks that are mostly original songs, augmented by a newgrass interpretation of the Bob Dylan classic, ‘Maggie's Farm’.

Shilling's ‘Have You Heard About the Old Hometown’, a darkly hued rumination on a manufacturing town fallen on hard times, is the album's most affecting tune, which features the composer on lead vocal, Cherryholmes lending harmony support, and excellent ensemble work. Likewise, ‘I Can’t Get Over You’, a standard-issue vamping jam, showcases some worthy riff-trading by this posse of seasoned bluegrass pros. Unfortunately, Mountain Heart will most likely not light up too many blue skies with their latest project. While Shilling can carry a tune with expert precision, his voice is bland, lacking the sort of emotional flare or idiosyncratic distinction that might have turned the formulaic material into something more rewarding. The production, like the music, is Nashville-slick with no rough edges on which to catch an ear.