Named after the Nashville studio they've co-owned since 2002,
Woodland
is the second record credited to both
Gillian Welch
and
David Rawlings
, though their ongoing partnership dates back three decades and is recognized and assumed by their fans and peers. Since debuting in the late '90s with two critically admired label releases, they have at every turn cut their own path, bucking industry norms, avoiding Americana tropes, and approaching both their music and business ethics with a staunch individualism. After three previous nominations, they were awarded a Best Folk Album Grammy for 2020's
All the Good Times (Are Past and Gone)
, a collection of traditional material and covers by icons like
John Prine
,
Elizabeth Cotten
, and
Bob Dyan
. It was an extremely casual and stripped-down set -- just the two of them singing and playing guitar -- that they self-recorded and released on their
Acony
imprint in the early part of the COVID-19 lockdowns. It was also the first time they shared co-billing, which at this point is more or less a technicality.
is its sequel, though it feels more like the successor to 2011's magnificent
The Harrow & the Harvest
, which was the last to feature new originals from
Welch
. And what a welcome return it is. Made in the wake of a tornado that nearly devastated their studio, its redemptive undertones are hard to miss. Musically, it is one of their densest releases, featuring an occasional rhythm section, pedal steel, fiddle, and full string arrangements on a handful of cuts. Despite this,
has the same sense of restraint and tasteful nuance that characterizes all the music they've made together. On the bittersweet "What We Had," the two trade verses before coming together in the intertwined close harmonies that are their signature.
leads "The Bells and the Birds," a pensive and dark-toned track whose open-ended lyrics play like a pre-winter hymn. Another standout is "Hashtag," which comments on the death of a fellow artist: "You laughed and said the news would be bad if I ever saw your name with a hashtag, singers like you and I are only news when we die." Poignant and darkly comic, it's a reflection of the world they themselves inhabit.
Rawlings
are not household names, yet they are influential artists who command a great deal of respect and admiration in their field.
continues their mastery of earthy country-folk songwriting that nods to tradition but is ultimately timeless and deeply human. ~ Timothy Monger