Black Twig Pickers: Ironto Special

Appalachian folk maestros and erstwhile bandmates with Jack Rose, The Black Twig Pickers return with a new album for Thrill Jockey (their first release for the label), recorded last year in the Virginian town of the title. As far as Americana goes, these guys are just about as authentic and on-the-money as it gets, romping through traditional regional songs (with a couple of originals thrown in) with an all-acoustic instrumental set-up that supplements a bedrock of banjo, fiddle and guitars with washboards, bones, fiddlesticks and jaw harp. Possibly the band's greatest coup is making their antique material current and vibrant; nothing about this fifteen-song selection sounds like it belongs to a defunct or expired artform. Recorded in single takes with no overdubs, Ironto Special is a joyous listen, performed by terrific musicians who clearly have a scholarly grasp on their cultural heritage.

-- Boomkat