April Verch
You may not recognize the name, but seven albums into a sixteen-year career, Canadian musician April Verch has gained an audience far beyond her native Ottawa Valley. The accomplished fiddler and stepdancer brings a wealth of talent and creativity to her latest release, on which she’s supported by an impressive cast of acoustic musicians and songwriters.
Verch’s voice has a clear, distinctive quality reminiscent enough of Claire Lynch that I stopped to check the liner notes for guest-vocal credits. (Plenty of guests, but no Claire Lynch.) For an artist known for her instrumental prowess, the focus here is as much on the songs as on the playing. There are tracks from Tim Stafford, Larry Cordle, and Ron Block, all respected bluegrass songwriters. But the real shining stars here are “Slip Away” and “Some People”, written, respectively, by relative newcomers Sarah Pirkle and Sarah Siskind. The best surprise, perhaps, is “Long Way Home” from Americana mainstay Hayes Carll.
Producers Stephen Mougin (of Sam Bush’s band) and Jon Weisberger (Verch’s former bandmate) weave in Celtic jigs, reels and waltzes with the newer material to create a tapestry of rich sounds. When the song calls for it as on “Fork Creek River” and “Independence, VA” the instrumentation is pared down and sparse. Other tracks feature soaring harmonies and instrumental support from the likes of Bush, Scott Vestal, and Randy Kohrs. Verch’s bright voice and supple fiddling are the threads that bind it all together.
April Verch and band perform “Long Way Home” from Steal The Blue.