Stupid Mountain Too Big

‘We call it stringband music because it's just too tedious to try and get into whether it's old-time, bluegrass, ragtime, country, or general freakout music.’ So sayeth Josh Bearman, banjoist, guitarist, mandolinist and bassist for The Hot Seats in the liner notes for Stupid Mountain Too Big, the latest album by the Richmond, Virginia-based acoustic quintet. Much of The Hot Seats' appeal stems from an unconventional approach to the American songbook, which often blurs the lines between sincere reverence and playful (often self-directed) mockery. Running down the 17 tracks on Stupid Mountain Too Big, the orientation leans toward a reverential bent on the canonical songs such as ‘Ida Red’, ‘Tennessee Mountain Fox Chase’ or ‘Farmer's Daughter’, while the mockery and fun-poking are largely reserved for the original material. The latter songs tend to focus on life's absurdities and irregularities, such as the abundance of American firearms fetishists on ‘Gun Crazy (in the USA)’, doing dumb stuff in spite of knowing better (‘Bad Decisions’) and rolling over instead of rioting in the streets on ‘Compliance’. It's all wrapped up in a splendidly produced, brilliantly performed foot-stomping package, which fans of trad and alt-bluegrass, country and old-time music alike will appreciate.