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HUNGRYTOWN – Further West (Listen Hear! Records LH503)

HUNGRYTOWN - Further West Further West is the third album from husband and wife duo Hungrytown: singer/song-writer/guitarist Rebecca Hall and multi-instrumentalist Ken Anderson. Originally from Vancouver they now live in Vermont where the CD was recorded.

It’s a mix of American folk-song styles from the almost grandeur of ‘Static’, featuring cellist Suzanne Mueller, to the pure country of ‘Don’t You Let Me Down’. The theme of the album is travel but never actually arriving. ‘Hard Way To Learn’ tells of a young mother who abandons her baby and goes on the run only to realise that she has achieved nothing. ‘Don’t Cross That Mountain’, co-written with Gene Morrison, is inspired by the story of a family who attempted to cross the Green Mountains in the autumn of 1821 and perished in the attempt. ‘Highway Song’ and ‘Static’ are both road songs, describing the journey but not the arrival.

Suzanne Mueller’s ‘Ramparts And Bridges’ has been singled out by others as one the album’s top tracks but I find it clumsy, despite being basically a good idea. Woody Guthrie’s ‘Pastures Of Plenty’ fits the theme perfectly and is perfectly delivered unaccompanied with no decoration. I love the way Guthrie rhymes “prunes” with “moon”!

Ken Anderson’s instrumental skills, coupled with Lissa Schenckenburger’s contributions on fiddle, give plenty of variety to what is essentially a simple structure. Further West won’t change the world but it will give repeated pleasure.

Dai Jeffries

Artists’ website: www.hungrytown.net