Lunch of Champions

Mother Banjo’s Swing Low

Late. Late is a good word for a review that was supposed to be up over a week ago. And everybody’s got excuses. Mine involves debilitating physical pain and a whole lot of mind-altering prescription drugs.

The less said about that the better I think.

So! Mother Banjo.

You know, Minnesota’s music scene seems to be blessed. I’ve been to shows from coast to coast and I’ve never found a city with a music scene like ours (though I have to say, people, we really have to start dancing more). It’s just accepted here, even taken for granted.

Which is exactly what I want to talk about with Mother Banjo’s new EP, Swing Low. Mother Banjo (aka Ellen Stanley for those who read the liner notes), as the name would suggest, plays the banjo. Now, before you put the CD back on the rack and walk out the store, that doesn’t mean you’re getting the soundtrack to Deliverance. There is a melancholic simplicity to Mother Banjo’s plucking and strumming. You hear the instrument as much as you hear the music. In our digital, distortion-happy, overproduced, over-saturated musical world, it’s a nice rest for the weary ear.

The vocals bring memories of Sandy Denny and Fairport Convention in me. It’s a sweet, strong but mortal voice. Very conversational. It puts you at ease and makes you feel like you could talk to this person.

Of course, it is Mother Banjo’s first recording, and still just an EP. No it’s not perfect, but it’s not pretentious either. It’s straight forward and to the point. It is what it is, and that’s nice.