Woodland

Precision, persistence and grace in the face of adversity, grief and destruction are at the heart of this impeccably intricate and ultimately emotional album from the Nashville-based duo. It’s named for, and was recorded at, their own Woodland Sound Studios where, in March 2020, just as COVID-19 hit, a tornado tore off most of the roof, threatening to destroy not just all their equipment but their master recordings. “Woodland has been at the heart of everything we do for the last 20 some years,” they say, “the past four years were spent almost entirely within its walls, bringing it back to life after the tornado and making this record.” The duo’s first album of new, original material in seven years thrillingly mingles their customary stripped-back treatments with full-band tracks and even some tasteful orchestrations over ten tracks steeped in old-time tradition while ruminating with wit and some remorse on the inevitability of change. It’s a bitter-sweet, life-affirming triumph.