The Old Comfort of Something New: Joe K. Walsh’s “Trust and Love”
What is the gauge for brilliance in musicianship? What sets an artist on a trajectory to elevate their work in a manner that is boundless in its potential, but so very difficult to nail down in words?
On his latest, “Trust and Love”, Joe K. Walsh sets the benchmark for whatever that may actually be. Constantly challenging the norms of what instrumental string band music is and can be. And in an ever expanding landscape with no shortage of virtuoso players he somehow continually manages to, not outshine, but instead consistently build upon and bloom in beautiful ways from his previous works.
Vast, deep pools of guitar reverb setting a palette for coursed strings to ring just above their surface. Undulating fiddle lines, playing curiously with the deeper tones of octave mandolin. Pedal and lap steels glide into the scope of the auditory orbit in a cosmic underpinning that further unfurls the expanse and depth of the arrangement…and that’s just the first track, “Milkweed Star”.
Looking at the liner notes and you could say “how does a fiddle, a mandolin and a lap steel and drums play well together?” Where mandolin is traditionally a percussive element in a string band setting, the addition of drums across much of the project allows Walsh to untether from that space and further explore the instrument in an even more extensive and inspiring manner. There is a unique and, maybe, unconventional nature at first glance of the instrument pairings here, but it works so damn well.
And yet, there is a familiarity to the tunes on “Trust and Love” that draws you in. The melodies and forms bleed with “the sound” that is unmistakably Walsh. But the arrangements lend exciting and new takes on how mandolin family instruments can be exhibited in a fresh and powerful way. A compelling conversation between inventive masters of improvisation that may keep you guessing in one moment ‘what they are saying’, and resolving back in comforting melody by the next phrase.
There is something intoxicating in Joe’s melodies. A prime example being “Closer, Still”. A tune which saw itself as the closing track on Walsh’s 2016 release “Borderland” (a record that is still one of only a small handful of CDs I keep in my car). Where that original iteration had a somber and the plodding feel of a rural summer hike across farmlands and forests, a not quite dire end, but a solemn one nonetheless, the addition of steel via Ron Hinman, injects an electricity into the track, and Dave Brophy’s loose snare and percussive hits give the band the foundation to branch out into the space within the track to explore. It still has that melancholic vibe, blue and deep and rich, but the valleys and peaks of the tune swing and sway in a hypnotic new fashion that pulls at the listener to pick the needle up and flip the record back over (or simply start it over again on their phone streaming service). It’s the little nuances in Walsh’s mandolin playing that give it a new life and the band bolstering up the tune in a way that gives us a semblance of the comfort of slipping on your favorite old sweatshirt intertwined with the elation of discovering something brand new you will, inevitably, love for a long time.
‘Trust and Love’ oft feels like a journey through “what could we do with X instrument”, always thoughtful and pensive, but still exploratory and constantly seeking in it’s nature. There is quiet contemplation in how each musician and their instrument interact with one another. Intense, but warm and reassured. An openness that exists when musicians have full confidence in one another…and dare I say “Trust and Love” in how they all play off one another’s energy and command of their instruments.
This is a record to listen to again and again. Pick it up today (digital, CD or vinyl) on BANDCAMP.
