Jake Armerding, Jake Armerding (Compass Records, 2003)

When I listened to Jake Armerding's self-titled release, I heard something a bit different than I was expecting. His Web site (which has since been updated) and the promotional flyer which was sent along with the CD both talked about his skills on fiddle, and about his background with the bluegrass band Northern Lights. I popped in the disc expecting to hear some blazing bluegrass fiddling. Instead, I heard a singer-songwriter; not at all what I was expecting. I grumbled and groused all the way through the album, pausing only for one track, the traditional fiddle tune "The Girl I Left behind Me." The fiddle is present on the album, usually pretty far down in the mix, but Armerding does get in a few tasty solos. Despite my complaining, though, by the end I found myself warming to the music. Some of the songs didn't hold my attention at all, but others have hooks that hold them in the listener's brain long afterwards.

There are equal amounts of up-tempo and moody on this recording. "Little Boy Blue" and "Peace of Mind" are bouncy, catchy country tunes. "Too Many People" is a smoking rockabilly number, with a hot electric fiddle solo by Armerding, and some gritty dobro work by Andrew Hall. I'm not sure what genre "Nevermind" falls in, but I like the jazzy harmonica and doo-wop backing vocals. Another good one is the homecoming anthem "Ithaca." Of the moody stuff, the best is "Adonai," an affirmation of faith with a circular melody and odd internal rhymes. On several of the songs, Armerding shows a penchant for using inventive rhyme schemes that make one think, "Aha, that's clever!" They approach overuse, though, bordering on "Hmmm, that's annoying" by the time the disc is finished.

Armerding has made his songwriting the focus of this CD, with respectable results. Next time, though, the fiddle (and mandolin and guitar) should move forward in the mix for a more balanced demonstration of his abilities.

[Tim Hoke]