Paper Airplane

Paper Airplane is the first release by Alison Krauss & Union Station since 2004's Lonely Runs Both Ways. All of the qualities that have made the multi-Grammy Award winning singer-fiddler from Illinois and her collaborators – Barry Bales (acoustic bass), Jerry Douglas (Dobro and lap steel), Ron Block (banjo, guitar) and Dan Tyminski (guitar, mandolin, lead and vocal harmonies) – the poster children for the 21st century bluegrass revival are present in these 11 tracks. Although she doesn't write her own material, Krauss has a veteran's knack for knowing which vehicles are best suited for her artistic vision. The title-track, for example, was written by Robert Lee Castleman (one of the most regular contributors to the Krauss’ repertoire), mines an unsettlingly melancholic mood that represents a broader existential struggle, which defines the album's overall theme. ‘It represents a trial – like a trying time that has an end,’ Krauss has said. ‘Dust Bowl Children’ describes another type of trial, this one stirred up by Mother Nature; it's a throwback flat-picker's showcase written by Peter Rowan and sung by Tyminski (the singing voice for George Clooney in Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?).

When T-Bone Burnett wrangled together Alison Krauss and Robert Plant to produce the 2007 blockbuster album, Raising Sand, an entirely new audience was exposed to Americana music. If that same audience follows Krauss’ career to Paper Airplane, they will be similarly rewarded.