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Album reviews Music

Andrew Collins Trio

Rating: NNN


Since the release of 2012’s Cats And Dogs, local mandolin man Andrew Collins has solidified his trio lineup, with James McEleney on bass and mandocello and Mike Mezzatesta on guitar, mandolin and mandola. It’s a smaller, steadier sound with lots of genre variety: folk, bluegrass, jazz, classical. Third song Vivace From Concerto In D Minor is borrowed straight from Bach.

They also add vocals and lyrics, at least on some of the cover songs. Collins’s rough, rustic cover of Nick Drake’s One Of These Things First is a grower (he plays mandocello on it), and trad song Little Satchel (sung with Sofia Harwell) makes a good closer. The instrumental originals (six out of 10 of the songs) tend to be sunny and bright, but it gets interesting when the band sounds like it will unravel on Bill Evans cover Interplay.

Top track: One Of These Things First

The Andrew Collins Trio play Hugh’s Room Tuesday (April 29).

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