Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
One of my favorite bluegrass bands, Chatham County Line, has a new album out on March 4. It’s called Chatham County Line IV. It’s the band’s fourth album. I see a theme here…
Anyway, it’s awesome that the band recorded the album right here in Ashvegas. Here’s a bit from the press release:
This record really does feel like our coming out party in a lot of ways,” remarks Chatham County Line songwriter Dave Wilson in his signature deliberate drawl. “Before, we were trying to fit into this one niche because of the instruments we like to play. But now we just look at our instruments as our instruments and it’s all about taking that and evolving into the band we are and want to be.”
Banjo, fiddle, mandolin, guitar and bass certainly conjure certain musical images to mind, and in the past CCL had been content to play the part – a fun loving bluegrass band touring endlessly, summers full of festivals and hi-jinx. But now with the release of their aptly titled fourth album IV, Dave and the band are ready to get down to business, “We started the band as a way to hang out and drink beer. Slowly it turns into a career. This record is about growing up and becoming a band.”
For their fourth album IV, the band is back with producer and Chapel Hill indie legend Chris Stamey after a one-album hiatus. One fourth of the jangle-pop defining dB’s, Chris has worked with rock, pop and roots artists as varied as Yo La Tengo, Alex Chilton and Alejandro Escovedo. It was his diverse musical sensibilities that brought the band back to Chris and the church-turned-studio, Echo Mountain in Asheville.
“We always love working with Chris,” says Chandler Holt. “His dedication and attention to detail are second to none and he just made sense for the type of album we wanted to make. This record is a little more pop in feel and everyone knows Chris can make a beautiful pop record with his hands tied behind his back.”
The Whiskeytown producing alumn knew from the first time he saw the band that this was more than a tribute to traditionalism, he knew the band was moving toward something more. “They have always stayed true to their traditional instrumentation,” says Stamey, “but their albums have never been limited by that in any way. There has always been a progression. They’ve used bluegrass as a jumping off point, a vernacular through which to access all that is roots music, be that gospel, country, rock or pop. That’s American music and they are an American band.”
