Still Crooked
by Crooked Still
Shawn the Bemused
Shawn the Bemused
Crooked Still is my new favorite band. Take the song Pharaoh for example, with its bowed bass and cello churning out a wicked driving pulse. A plucked banjo adds tasty percussive spice while the violin drops emotive comments under, over and through the foundation. Finally, O'Donovan's vocal drifts over the strings with her dreamy, relaxed delivery. Pharaoh is moody, lucid and captivating all at the same time. It is an aural speedball. Great work!
Aisha
Aisha
My favorite album of 2022 (when I first discovered this amazing music). My favorite is this rendition of the old hymn Florence. It is so touching. Thank you for the music.
Favorite track: Florence.
rjsatterwhite
abama
stewb
Matthew McRae
theholypumpkin
eljay_br
David Atkinson
joaquin_dinero
gerritt-mcthrill
Casey
mistkindred
snowfell
jfkisme
Daniel Clements
sombra_swiftwind
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Rick Chapman
Craig Meltzner
squeaks
Ken White
bergy
jjborders
fauxgenius
bkohler79
mediaeval
Skyco Music
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Ralv
ohrowanmine
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quietly-turning
Jarchoo
Accidentally Sam
Chris Barker
Clemens Fleischberger
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david bleier
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Michael Wood
Henrik Laurberg Pedersen
Deathinfektor
N/A
tzushih
Robby
J.K. Stringer
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Craig M
Peter Malek
EmyDura
K.Kato
Jesper Brunholm
dcleclair
MARTIN S.
Mark Salisbury
mathieuAKAsteak
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Compact Disc (CD) + Digital AlbumIncludes unlimited streaming of Still Crooked via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.Download available in 16-bit/44.1kHz.ships out within 4 daysPurchasable with gift card
$13 USD
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Streaming + DownloadIncludes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.Purchasable with gift cardDownload available in 16-bit/44.1kHz.
$9 USD or more
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Full Digital Discography
Get all 10 Crooked Still releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Little Sadie, Ecstasy, Ain't No Grave, Live At Grey Fox, July 16, 2006, Friends of Fall, Some Strange Country, Crooked Still Live, Still Crooked, and 2 more.
Purchasable with gift card$51.75 USD (25% OFF)
1. |
Undone In Sorrow
03:05
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2. |
The Absentee
02:27
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3. |
Captain, Captain
02:42
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4. |
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5. |
Low Down and Dirty
04:07
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6. |
Oh, Agememnon
04:04
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7. |
Pharaoh
04:42
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8. |
Florence
03:28
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9. |
Did You Sleep Well?
04:07
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10. |
Poor Ellen Smith
02:44
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11. |
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12. |
Wading Deep Waters
04:12
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13. |
about
The new five-member version of Crooked Still converged to mingle their creative processes at Allaire Studios in upstate New York, with producer Eric Merrill for Still Crooked. The album balances unknown traditional material with three new tunes from the band, along with "Did You Sleep Well?" by fellow old time musician Nathan Taylor, and a Mississippi John Hurt standard. The entire album was recorded "live" in one big room, with everyone playing together. Merrill captured most songs in one or two takes. "I was outside in the hallway, because my voice is so quiet," O'Donovan says. "Recording live, you don't have an option to overdub; that always makes a better album."
With Haas and Clarridge, the band has proven themselves to be even more adventurous, breathing their cosmic fire into old songs. "When Rushad left, we wanted to move in new directions," O'Donovan says. "Brittney adds another female presence to the band; I can hear my voice in her fiddling. Tristan has a refined cello tone, with a powerful, restrained energy. They bring a fresh outlook to the arrangements that keeps the music exciting."
"We rehearsed for a few days before we recorded," Clarridge says. "We'd listen to a source recording, strip the songs to the bone and build an arrangement incorporating everyone's ideas. It's fun to see how many directions you can take a song." Everyone brought material for consideration. "As we worked on the songs, we realized there was a lot of loss and mortality in the lyrics," banjo player Greg Liszt adds. "You can't make a folk album without delving into what's happening now and we were surprised at how current the songs sounded. On 'Captain, Captain' a woman asks what happened to her lover and the Captain replies 'he dropped down dead in the gulf.' It's a 400-year-old line, but it gives you chills."
Still Crooked is an ensemble effort of inspired music making that moves the bands' impossible- to-pigeonhole style in new directions while honoring their folk roots. "It's hard to pin down our music," bass player Corey DiMario says. "We play improvised old time music, bluegrass, folk and our own songs within the broad context of a string band. Like a lot of today's bands, we have modern and traditional influences that confuse the boundaries. We want to keep blurring those lines to make something all our own."
With Haas and Clarridge, the band has proven themselves to be even more adventurous, breathing their cosmic fire into old songs. "When Rushad left, we wanted to move in new directions," O'Donovan says. "Brittney adds another female presence to the band; I can hear my voice in her fiddling. Tristan has a refined cello tone, with a powerful, restrained energy. They bring a fresh outlook to the arrangements that keeps the music exciting."
"We rehearsed for a few days before we recorded," Clarridge says. "We'd listen to a source recording, strip the songs to the bone and build an arrangement incorporating everyone's ideas. It's fun to see how many directions you can take a song." Everyone brought material for consideration. "As we worked on the songs, we realized there was a lot of loss and mortality in the lyrics," banjo player Greg Liszt adds. "You can't make a folk album without delving into what's happening now and we were surprised at how current the songs sounded. On 'Captain, Captain' a woman asks what happened to her lover and the Captain replies 'he dropped down dead in the gulf.' It's a 400-year-old line, but it gives you chills."
Still Crooked is an ensemble effort of inspired music making that moves the bands' impossible- to-pigeonhole style in new directions while honoring their folk roots. "It's hard to pin down our music," bass player Corey DiMario says. "We play improvised old time music, bluegrass, folk and our own songs within the broad context of a string band. Like a lot of today's bands, we have modern and traditional influences that confuse the boundaries. We want to keep blurring those lines to make something all our own."
credits
released January 1, 2008
license
all rights reserved
tags
about
Crooked Still Boston, Massachusetts
Crooked Still is equal parts ambassador and innovators. The musical prowess of this defiantly non-traditional bluegrass quintet formed in 2001 in Boston, Massachusetts and are known for their high energy, technical skill, unusual instrumentation, and innovative acoustic style. ... more
discography
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Aug 2021
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Jun 2021
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Sep 2020
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Nov 2018
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Mar 2014
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Jan 2010
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Jun 2009
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Jan 2008
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Apr 2007
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Jan 2006