Artist: Martin Harley and Daniel Kimbro
Album: Static in the Wires
Label: Del Mundo
Release Date: 05-10-2017
At first, guitarist Martin Harley and bassist Daniel Kimbro seem like an unlikely pair, Harley being a native of the U.K. and Kimbro hailing from East Tennessee. Even so, it’s their common appreciation for a rootsy repast that finds them such a compatible duo. With Static in The Wires, their second collaborative outing, the two men tackle a breezy musical palette that forsakes any hint of pretension and leans instead on basic blues and arcane Americana. True to their template, the arrangements are well-soaked in sepia tones, with Harley’s bottleneck guitar steady at the fore and Kimbro’s sturdy bass ably and effectively bottoming out the rest. Consequently, the sentiments expressed herein ring with sincerity and genuine reverence for the form, whether it’s through the jaunty pacing of “One Horse Town” and the confident strut of “Feet Don’t Fail Me” (featuring a guest appearance by Jerry Douglas), or the tattered tapestry that adorns “Postcard from Hamburg” and “Gold.” “This Little Bird” and “Mean Old City – Part Two” find Harley playing the customary role of troubled troubadour, all basic blues with abject emotional resilience. Simplicity is key, but even so, Static in the Wires carries a certain charge.
—Lee Zimmerman
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