Gina Clowes - True Colors
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The dozen songs featured on Gina Clowes’ True
Colors reveal that Gina Clowes is a creative force beyond her current role as
the as being far more than just the banjo player for Chris Jones and the
Night Drivers. Her first solo effort shows that she’s not just a first class
musician, but she’s a top shelf songwriter and capable vocalist as well. The
album is largely devoted to songs with lyrics, but Clowes fortunately doesn’t
resist the temptation to add some instrumentals to the track list and their inclusion makes True Colors a much
richer, more varied release. She adheres to the bluegrass style for much of
this album, but that sound comes about in different ways for her. Some of the
songs on True Colors are straight forward traditional bluegrass while others
put off a more confessional, Americana songwriter type of vibe, but she seems
equally comfortable with both approaches. A couple of songs veer away entirely
from the bluegrass mold and have more folksy origins, but they sound perfectly
in keeping with the album’s mood and sonic architecture.
The clawhammer
banjo of Clowes’ brother Victor Furtado and Clowes’ own banjo playing team up
with stylish effect on the album’s opener “Puppet Show”. This is certainly a
more sharply worded, even a little barbed, reflection on a relationship and
Clowes sings the words with just the right amount of resentment without ever
careening over the line. There’s a low-key, simmering musical mood driving this
song that exerts a strong effect over the listener. “Saylor’s Creek” brings all
of the typical instrumentation to bear, but another family member contributes
much to the final outcome. Sister, Malia Furtado’s fiddle playing has a lot of
influence over the atmosphere of this instrumental inspired by an American
Civil War battle and it adds a tremendous amount to other tunes throughout the
course of True Colors. The album, as a whole, has quite a live sound and
excellent separation of instruments – the players on this song in particular
weave a colorful tapestry of sound that conjures the dramatics of the song’s
subject matter.
“Dust Can Wait” is
another gem of an instrumental that sweeps the listener along at a brisk pace
and has a little more stripped down sound compared to the previously mentioned
tune. “For Better or For Worse” utilizes the guest vocals of Heather Berry Mabe
to memorable effect and she gets deep inside this narrative about a struggling
relationship. This is a song that knows more than it says and has real maturity
that will resonate with many listeners. “Goodbye, Lianne” has the salutatory
air implied in its title and trots along at a fine pace with each of the
primary instrumentalists taking their turn with melodic breaks. “I’ll Stay
Home” is much more of an acoustic singer/songwriter type of track and retains
all of the personal touches common to the earlier songs whilst taking a
different approach. We’re lucky to hear and see Gina Clowes’ many different
faces on True Colors and it reveals a musical artist who has only begun to
reveal the many layers of her considerable talents.
RELATED ARTICLE: https://bluegrasstoday.com/gina-clowes-to-mountain-home/
Stephen Bailey
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