Daybreak

There are lots of musicians on the bluegrass scene who play traditional, straight-ahead bluegrass, and some who combine it with elements of modern acoustic jazz and country music, but there are few who move back and forth from straight-ahead bluegrass to newgrass fusion with as much grace and as little obvious effort as Sierra Hull does. On her second album, she presents a program that includes seven original songs, and it's hard to know where to start in praising her: she has a voice as clear and carefully modulated as that of a young Alison Krauss; her songs are rooted in tradition but full of sly and subtle complications that will take any careful listener by delighted surprise, and her mandolin playing is a thrilling combination of sparkling precision and jazzy abandon. For acid-grass fans there's the rock-solid but creamily smooth "Don't Pick Me Up," a 1950s-style uptempo abandonment plaint; for those who miss the halcyon days of Grisman-Rice-styled New Acoustic Music, there's the brilliant instrumental "Bombshell" (listen to that mandolin solo, for crying out loud); and for those who think they have her pegged, there's a little slice of hot Western swing called "Best Buy." And everything else on the album falls somewhere along that bluegrass-newgrass-jazz spectrum, except for the title track, which is a stunningly pretty acoustic pop ballad. Not bad at all for a 19-year-old; in fact, it would have been a proud achievement for someone with 20 years in the business. It's hard to imagine how she'll top this one. ~ Rick Anderson|

16歳でラウンダーからファースト・アルバム『Secrets』を発表し、＜ポスト・アリソン・クラウス＞の最有力候補と呼ばれたシエラ・ハルの2枚目。2年と10か月という十分なインターヴァルを経て、容姿だけでなくその歌声も大人の色香を増し、マンドリン・プレイも早弾きからスロウ・テンポによる深い情感表現まで、随分奥行きを増してる。トラディショナルなスタイルにモダンでポップなアレンジを意欲的に施した、ノスタルジックな感覚と革新性が同居する素晴らしい仕上がりだ。ヴォーカル、ソングライティング、アレンジ――すべてにおいてアリソン・クラウスの音楽が良きお手本になっているのだろう。まだ10代。この素直な表現のうえに、将来どのような個性を盛り込んでいくのか? 本当に楽しみだ。
bounce (C)鈴木智彦