This Side
,
Nickel Creek
's sophomore release, finds bandmembers
Chris Thile
Sara Watkins
, and
Sean Watkins
out of their teens and into their twenties after playing together for 12 years. The southern California band's self-titled debut received wide critical acclaim for welding
jazz
rock
classical
music to a
bluegrass
base. But
solidifies
's position as the single most original and inventive
band to emerge in the early '00s. Hardcore
fans wary of experimentation or even
progressive bluegrass
may scoff at this claim. But, when it comes down to it, the gorgeous, open production by
Alison Krauss
gives
's guitars, mandolins, and fiddles the space to dance through sparkling and genuine arrangements. Covers of everything from
Pavement
's rollicking
Terror Twilight
highlight,
"Spit on a Stranger,"
to
Carrie Newcomer
's scathing
folk
"Should've Known Better"
to the
traditional
"House Carpenter"
are given elegant and unique twists. Plus,
Thile
and the
Watkins
siblings' originals, like the sleepy, subtle
"Speak"
and the darker
"Beauty and the Mess,"
easily outdo the likes of
folk-rockers
Dave Matthews
and
Hootie & the Blowfish
, while forging a new style to rejuvenate a genre that has always been a bit of a dark horse. It's decidedly more
pop
than
post-rock
-gone-
outfits like
Papa M
David Grubbs
Palace
Miighty Flashlight
, and lacks the
rock & roll
flash of
Ryan Adams
. But
's music is endlessly rewarding nonetheless, and accessible to just about everyone. ~ Charles Spano