It's been far too long since Tim Eriksen released an album, and this live disc, recorded in the Czech Republic in 2008, not only marks a welcome return, it's also a summing up of what he's done in the past, bringing together the strands of his music, the traditional folk he explored with Cordelia's Dad and alone, and the shape-note singing that's been his passion. Performing completely alone, and accompanying himself on banjo, fiddle, and guitar, he could seem very naked, but instead everything feels very full, and he's ...
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It's been far too long since Tim Eriksen released an album, and this live disc, recorded in the Czech Republic in 2008, not only marks a welcome return, it's also a summing up of what he's done in the past, bringing together the strands of his music, the traditional folk he explored with Cordelia's Dad and alone, and the shape-note singing that's been his passion. Performing completely alone, and accompanying himself on banjo, fiddle, and guitar, he could seem very naked, but instead everything feels very full, and he's possibly in the best voice of his life on material he's been performing for many years. The Northern Roots of the album title refers to music from Eriksen's native New England, and the Sacred Harp singing feeds well into that -- the two approaches fit alongside each other perfectly in this context. By performing material like "O Death" and "I Wish the Wars Were All Over," both so well known, he could have been setting himself up for failure, but he brings so much, singing and playing with so much passion (not to mention remarkable technical skill) that he makes everything his own (while plugging his Sacred Harp singing session). It's a beautiful disc, a storming triumph of American folk music -- and this is very definitely American -- and a reminder of just how good Eriksen is. It will be interesting to see what he comes up with on his next studio disc., Rovi
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