Chris Thile - How to Grow a Woman From the Ground (14 tracks) +Album Reviews

Bluegrass, new grass, it's all good grass...

1969mets | New York, NY | 09/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Think of all the bluegrass child prodigies that have crossed genres to create amazing music--Marty Stuart, Mark O'Connor, Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss. Now consider Chris Thile, who is on the verge of blowing them all away. This record is, perhaps, the finest "rock" album played on bluegrass instruments ever made. It's all here: impeccable musicianship, smart arrangements, bluegrass, jazz, a White Stripes tune, bla, bla, bla. This kid is growing fast, he has outgrown the grass, he has outgrown the wonderful Nickel Creek, there's no telling where he's gonna take this thing (Ornette Coleman?? Nicaraguan mountain music??) but I'd suggest you hop on right here and stay along for the ride."

A Mix of Quality and Mediocrity

Aaron Rutledge | 09/13/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"To be blunt, I haven't particularly cared for Thile's recent, not-quite-successful synthesis of jazz, bluegrass, folk and alt/indie rock. I was excited to hear that Chris was trying to get back to his roots with this album, but am slightly disappointed with the net results. The reintroduction of the banjo, fiddle and upright bass, as well as the integration of more traditional tempos and melodies establishes that unmistakable bluegrass sound. However, this album lacks the grace and charm of Chris' work previous to the release of "Deciever". In my opinion, the drop in quality since "All Who Wander Are Not Lost" (NAWWAL) is due solely to Chris' new-found penchant for edgy, supposed-to-be deep lyricism. While the musicianship on this album is as good as it gets, and the song-craft is solid, I find that I find myself quickly annoyed with the psuedo-intellectual, self-involved tendencies embodied by the poetry. For whatever reason Chris has become enamored with the trendy "l'esprit" of the alt/indie rock scene, perhaps because it embodies all of the things he wanted to be, but never was, while growing up (i.e. cool, urban, hip, sarcastic, cutting edge, ansgty, controversial, ironic, etc). Personally, I think Chris' genius is confined to instrumentalism and song-craft. I enjoyed his forrays into jazz and classical musicianship on NAWWAL and believe that this is where he shines (by the way, The Beekeeper is my favorite song on this album). Vocally he has evolved a brash and confrontational style which comes off as grating to my sensabilities, and as a lyricist he has consistently disappointed me with an immaturity of content (though, apparently he has not disappointed others). To be fair, this work is five steps in the right direction since the release of "Deciever". While I am not overly impressed with this effort, I do recognize that many other people (including Chris) seem find it suitable enough. Like I said, its not really my cup of tea, but it will be interesting to see what Chris has in store for the future."

Solo wizard gets a band

Daniel A. Lewis | Logan, UT USA | 09/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mandolin prodigy Chris Thile's last album, Deceiver, was a little off-kilter. He sang with himself and played every instrument on the album. What resulted was an almost private lyric in an unhappy marriage with merely average instrumentation (aside from the mandolin and a few other bright spots).

Deceiver is an illustration of Donne's axiom, "No man is an island, entire of itself," along with its lesser-known corollary, "so suck it up and get a band." How to Grow a Woman from the Ground provides the proof, QED.

Here, Thile is content to be first among equals. His emotional vision is intact, but he's brought in musicians to rival and even surpass the lyrics. With several covers and instrumentals, Thile is not a one-man show. He often takes a back seat to the awe-inspiring play of his bluegrass bandmates, and blends into the background on some great harmony singing.

I find it very difficult to single out songs for individual praise. I'm a fan of Wayside, The Beekeeper, and Heart in a Cage, but you'll have to choose your own. It's Thile's most complete album to date, and better yet, it sounds fun where Deceiver was merely earnest.

You'll listen to it over and over again."

I really wanted to give it fewer stars

Nathan Allan | Provo, UT USA | 10/26/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Even with the offensive F-bomb, and a couple songs that are ever so slightly boring... even at the risk of giving a bigger head to a "lost himself in stardom" young star; I simply cannot give this album anything less than 5 stars. I've been listening to quite a few greats like Grisman and Marshall and though they certainly deserve heaps of props, I sincerely believe that Chris is simply the best mandolin player ever. Not only that, he has uncanny prowess for composition and improvisation, the likes of which are virtually unequalled.

Listening to his music, one can tell that Chris grew bored of traditional music boundaries fairly early in his career. His yearning to keep himself interested, combined with the usual follies of youth are clearly manifest in his most recent albums. It is difficult to participate as somebody fumbles around trying to find themselves; and Chris has had no qualms about sharing this tumultuous emotional journey with his listeners. The lyrics of "How to Grow a Woman..." are perhaps more innocuous than those of Deceiver, but still portray a tormented Thile. It is for this reason that I prefer his instrumental tracks. Lyrics aside, however, I must also confess to liking his well architected vocal harmonies.

If you are a top 40s music listener, you may not fully appreciate this music. It is rich and layered, and requires some conditioning; similar to what is necessary to appreciate Jazz or Classical. On the other hand, if you already like Bluegrass, Newgrass, Dawg, Folk, or acoustic music, you will probably like, no, let's say love this album.

If you don't have any Chris Thile albums, I would recommend starting with Not All Who Wander Are Lost. If you like more traditional stuff, head toward his younger albums, which are absolutely amazing coming from a musician at any age.

In the end, the world needs more music of this quality, so how could I possibly discount stars? Chris, kudos; now find yourself and keep the good stuff flowing!"

The gap needs to be bridged

Summer Reign | Colorado | 03/03/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This album is another success from one of the world's greatest mandolin players. He has chosen an eclectic array of songs to create an album that hits at almost every emotion. The musicianship is inarguably topnotch, which only compliments the song writing and various covers.

As long as I have listened to Nickel Creek I have found only one constant in the musical stylings of Chris Thile... there is no constant. He has dipped into seemingly every genre of music. If it is unwavering clean traditional bluegrass you are looking for, you will likely need to start looking other places than Chris Thile.

To be honest what is most concerning to me is how much controversy one swear word brought to the album. Many who would have given the album 4 or even 5 stars ended up giving it 1 or 2. Somehow it brought up the question of the tightrope musicians are forced to walk between pleasing fans and doing what they wish to do. Musicians know, better than anyone, that they will never please everyone. That aside, I am simply dumbfounded that it caused such an issue. There are 13 other tracks without a swear word, even logistically it is absurd. He wasn't promoting a religious or political ideal. He wasn't spewing hate or anger. He simply covered a Strokes song that says `f***ing'.

If it really is that big of an issue, you must be locked in a cabin, because this country has drastically bigger issues. Focus on what the music does for you. Let it be an escape from the routine and try to be more accepting. There are amazing songs written in almost every style of music, Thile understands this. I think he also understands that swear words are not necessarily malicious. Thile has the ability to bridge the gap between those who love traditional bluegrass, and those who seek more.

One review said "I'll probably never buy another Thile or Nickel Creek CD because of this. Hopefully, using this word was worth it for him". I personally wouldn't even want fans that boycotted me after a single word. Trust me, for every one person that was offended by the word, 50 were not."

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