The Foghorn String Band
Album: Devil In The Seat
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 16
Website: http://www.foghornstringband.com

The Foghorn String Band is a very well established band now and their reputation certainly glows and for good reason. String music has always been incredibly fun and these guys certainly show us just how fun it can be with sixteen energetic and brilliantly stereotypical tracks.

If you have a perception of how an American country string band sounds then every single perception will be ticked by the Foghorn String Band. With this being said it is certainly by no means a bad thing, in fact it is part of what makes this band fantastic to listen to.

Between the four of them, this band certainly produces an entertaining array of songs. Devil in the Seat gives us a whole host of fast blues and slow blues and everything in between. I particularly enjoy the sharing of vocal leads that get fairly distributed throughout the album giving each member the chance to shine.

The wonderful Nadine and Reeb do a fantastic duet in 'Mining Camp Blues' and the two chaps equally plough through their songs with good old American enthusiasm. One of my particular favourites of the album is the 'Chicken Reel' a nice instrumental that would be perfect for a fast paced country dance to really get you out of breath.

There is a good choice and mix of traditional songs and tunes along with more modern takes to really capture the interest of any music enthusiast. I think their desire to stick to roots and not in any way try to modernise is what makes this band so strong. Modernisation may have its place but it certainly works better as a tried and tested means for the Foghorn String Band to keep it traditional.

A thoroughly enjoyable addition to a vast catalogue that this band has to offer.

Paul Rawcliffe