If I could rename the new release "Can't Slow Down" from the Duluth-based group Too Many Banjos, I'd call it "Kinda."
Everything about the disc is kinda something. The writing is kinda interesting. The banjos, as played by main songwriter Marc Gartman and Trampled by Turtles' Dave Carroll, are kinda clanky. Vocal skills at times are kinda weak, but other times kinda OK. The mix is kinda messy and often has doesn't let the featured performer come through. The overall feel is kinda like a folk/bluegrass group without the vocal and instrumental finesse that most bluegrass groups display.
"Maybelle" is about the voyage of the Titanic (a topic that somehow seems kinda overworked to me ... but hey). It comes through the eyes of a young girl who survives the traumatic event.
"13,000 Railroad Men" is a song about Chinese immigrants (a topic that is certainly not overdone): "Working in the hills with their hammer in their hand." It's complete with murder -- "If you gotta stab a man, then you better use a knife" -- and mayhem.
"Looks Like a Movie" is an engaging little instrumental with some nimble banjo, slap bass (Karl Anderson), nice percussion (Lane Prekker) and sprightly fiddle (Jillian Rae).
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A claw hammer-style folk ballad "Hunt Me Down" is about a strong-willed narrator who's going to "bring along a shotgun, boy, I'm gonna take you down."
"My Old Man" is an upbeat instrumental from fiddler Rae. Producer and recording engineer Rich Mattson's mix suppresses the violin's melody line, reducing it to a kinda back-up role when it should be out front.
"Holy Of Holies" is a laid-back look at the aging process, disease and death. It actually has a lovely melody with some stirring fiddle, which again seems buried by the mix.
"Can't Slow Down" is Two Many Banjos' fourth new release in the past two years. With a fifth disc already recorded and a release date of later this year, five discs in two years might be considered kinda overkill.
Unlike producing widgets, in producing music, quantity does not trump quality. A good songwriter who writes six really good songs in two years is a genius. Someone who writes 100 lame ones is not. Similarly, one really well-written, well-performed and well-recorded release in two years is far more impressive than four or five mediocre ones.
Maybe Two Many Banjos should avoid their own advice, even if it's difficult, and kinda slow down.
Two Many Banjos
CD Title: "Can't Slow Down"
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Genre: Folk/bluegrass
Recorded at: Sparta Sound
Produced by: Rich Mattson
Web site: www.twomanybanjos.com
Personnel: Marc Gartman (banjo, vocals), Dave Carroll (banjo, vocals), Jillian Rae (fiddle, vocals), Karl Anderson (bass, vocals), Lane Prekker (washboard)
Upcoming gigs: May 29 at Mayslacks Music Lounge in Minneapolis and May 30 at Pizza Luce, 11 E. Superior St., Duluth, 727-7400
