Milkdrive: at The Station Inn (Nashville, TN) Wed. May 8, 2013

Milkdrive

Bluegrass

Nashville Scene Critic's Pick …

Milkdrive’s homepage calls the quartet “jazz-grass,” but that ain’t really right. Like a growing number of young string bands, Milkdrive uses some core bluegrass instruments — all of its members save bassist Matt Medford swap fiddles, mandolins and guitars around — but their music builds mostly on indie rock, pop, Americana and yes, jazz influences, leavened by a healthy dose of instrumental brilliance. To do that right takes some thought, some creativity and a whole lot of nights spent playing your way into coherence, and it all pays off on the group’s latest album, Waves, where the guys blend band originals with a few nods to their Texas roots in covers of Bruce Robison and James McMurtry. And wouldn’t you know it? The most oddly titled tune in the bunch, “Gargamel’s Cat,” turns out to be the closest thing to a traditional bluegrass rave-up on the whole album.

—Jon Weisberger