Now that Bela Fleck has made the world safe for pop-jazz Scruggs-style banjo picking, it's about time someone took clawhammer banjo a bit further afield. Eric Souders is an Arizona-based banjo player whose self-released debut CD is a charming excursion beyond the normal realms of the clawhammer... [+] Expand

Now that Bela Fleck has made the world safe for pop-jazz Scruggs-style banjo picking, it's about time someone took clawhammer banjo a bit further afield. Eric Souders is an Arizona-based banjo player whose self-released debut CD is a charming excursion beyond the normal realms of the clawhammer style, which is usually associated with old-time (i.e., pre-bluegrass) string band music. The titles of these compositions are something of a giveaway -- when the tune is called "Subterranean Leach Fields" or "Permeability of Free Space," you can rest assured you're not going to be hearing an inverted rewrite of "Blackberry Blossom." And Souders' accompaniment is a little unusual, too: backup instruments include trombone, cello and percussion. But don't be afraid, much of this material draws heavily from traditional styles; "Dromedary Skies" and "Sol King," in particular, though mildly adventurous in terms of chord progression and right-hand technique, sound comfortably like fiddle tunes with a twist. "Treinte Aroba" is a rather dry duet with cello, but the slowly percolating "Bougie Decimales" manages to sound both old-timey and funky at the same time. Great stuff. (For further information, contact Souders at azimuth@infomagic.com.) ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide [-] Collapse

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