One More Flight – The Sawtooth Brothers (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

Musical genres are made up of  gradients running from one extreme to the other with bands being positioned along it based on factors not always as pure as just playing songs. The line begins in its heartland traditions, music made for the purists, those who believe that the rules are already written and must be adhered to. At the far end of that same line you find acts working to take the genres musical traits to a more commercial audience. There is an argument for both approaches.

The Sawtooth Brothers probably exist 2 thirds of the way along the line. Having travelled sonically from the purer sound of Bluegrass and music largely associated  with the South east of the USA to a more commercial sound. It’s a great balancing act, for whilst there are enough roots securing them to enough tradition as to appeal to the hardcore fans, their ability to blend it with more mainstream country, folk and even pop aware melodicism will serve them, and indeed the genre, well.

They match old school dexterity with a deftness that will appeal to the masses, tug at enough nostalgic generic threads but comes up with marketable modern designs, in short they offer their chosen music a bright future, one that sees them sporting shades and looking forward rather than donning rose-tinted glasses and reaching for their Bill Munroe records.