The Stray Birds - Best Medicine (2014) FLAC

Chock full of story-filled lyrics and smart harmonies, interwoven with wonderfully separated string lines and strums, this album offers some heartfelt creativity.

A couple of my faves include "Feathers & Bone," which is introduced with whispery vocal intensity that builds in its urgent story. And "The Bells," is a down and dirty twangin' fast-talkin' tale of caution. Some great lines here both lyrical and instrumental. The title track, "Best Medicine," has a great chorus, chock full of tight harmonies with a catchy melody.

The musical prowess of The Stray Birds is apparent here, as the instrumentation is artfully arranged and vocals never trip over each other. Complemented by thoughtful dynamics and masterful storytelling, Best Medicine should be your next favorite album of 2014. It is definitely one of mine.

The album follows the band’s 2012 highly praised self-titled release, which NPR Music named as one of the Top 10 Folk/Americana albums.

Co-produced by the band and Stuart Martin, the album features 12 tracks, including 10 original compositions and two traditional songs, “Pallet” and “Who’s Gonna Shoe.”

The band – multi-instrumentalists and vocalists Maya de Vitry, Oliver Craven, and Charlie Muench – hails from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. All three are classically trained musicians who’ve been making music of all kinds since childhood (before they reconnected through the local music scene, de Vitry and Muench first met in middle school orchestra); however, they were also all raised with a steady diet of music ranging from pioneers like The Carter Family and Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys to the joyous invention of The Beatles and The Band, to the groundbreaking artistry of Jimi Hendrix.