“Solo albums, by established band members, too often turn out to be massive musical ego trips, but not in the case of Justin Bernasconi. Justin has delivered a completely different bag of goodies compared to his main project, The Stillsons. Winter Pick, the opening track conjures up images of Justin’s home country, with its hedgerows full of berries, dormant trees and quiet crisp sounds whilst the earth is at its restive best. Justin shows his guitar playing pedigree and forte to its best, for all to listen to. Mary Blue is a laid back acoustic track; one can imagine a Spring day, a chair on the verandah with Justin gently strumming away and that is the thing with Justin’s work – a lot of it is very visual. On tracks like Bernie’s Breakdown one is introduced to a Country jam , of the highest order, with Justin bouncing off Pete Fidler on dobro, Corey Romeo on Mandolin and Jeff Lang on harmonium and bowed chumbrush. Ram’s Eye, a clever turning of the name of a Cambridgeshire town (Ramsey) has a particular meaning to Justin, with his recollections of his school days, local history and the town itself. Whilst this might seem somewhat too self-meaning, it is not and one can be drawn into the saga of the bull and the ram. If it’s a Country Hoedown you want (the name emanated from a Canadian TV program) Crock of Rags will fulfil all your needs; brilliantly constructed, great interplay and true to its roots. This album, WINTER PICK, portrays Justin in a different light; one which is removed from The Stillsons, but still distantly related. It is full of Country, Country Blues, Gospel, Bluegrass intonations, acoustica and damned good playing.” Tony Bates Uncut and Unsigned 3MDR
Posted on: Wed, 30 Apr 2014 06:19:48 +0000
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