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Oct 26, 2020In reinventing and giving a modern twist to timeless but overlooked folk gems, Sam Amidon has concocted something entirely unique that nobody else could, or arguably ever would, have done...in itself, a form of inspired creation. There’s an undeniable magic to this thing. I highly encourage you to check your reservations at the door and dive in.
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Nov 3, 2020This is not your parents’ contradance music or your cool older brother’s free improvisation or even your cousin’s slightly over-ripe New Weird Americana, but something else entirely. Amidon learned the old tunes by heart so he could stretch and cut and distort and juxtapose the pieces to make music that resonates and expands.
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UncutOct 26, 2020Amidon's spry banjo and sky-blue voice give this music a gentle centre, light on ego or affection. [Dec 2020, p.27]
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Oct 26, 2020Amidon's artistry is on full display on the eponymous album, with its sometimes-uncanny merging of timeless emotions, atmosphere, and musicality.
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Nov 9, 2020Amidon reportedly regards his new, self-titled album as the fullest realization of his vision, and indeed, it’s a digestible nine-song omnibus of his modes and moods.
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Nov 13, 2020Most of the songs are traditional, the most recent being Amidon's cover of Taj Mahal's "Light Rain Blues". Amidon sings the lyrics straight in a calm and unaffected voice as sounds buzz and whirr by. There is a sense of movement, or more precisely, a sense of impeding movement as if one is waiting for the rain to stop so one can head on one's way.
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Oct 26, 2020It represents a substantial advance in sound and scope from Amidon’s earlier approaches to folk material.
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MojoOct 26, 2020Several songs here feel swamped. [Nov 2020, p.88]