A brighter shade of bluegrass

Authenticity and virtuosity are hallmarks of bluegrass, yet both calling cards pose dangers for its practitioners. The genre is so tradition-bound that artists are tempted to overly fetishize the past in terms of sonic techniques and subject matter, their efforts succumbing to shtick and novelty. Likewise, over-reliance on musical chops at the expense of songwriting leads to such things as the commingling of bluegrass with burned-out jam bands.

Local outfit Chatham County Line is one of the best bands carrying the bluegrass tag, largely because the group replaces contrived grit with a bright, modern sound courtesy of legendary producer Chris Stamey, and likewise swaps showboating fretwork for a keen pop sensibility.

Granted, CCL is scarcely less beholden to black-and-white days than most of its bluegrass contemporaries. The newly released "IV" (Yep Roc Records) contains tales set in cathouses and on trains bound for Richmond. While far from timely, "Birmingham Jail" at least deserves credit for treating the infamous church bombing of 1963, especially considering that the milieu of so many bluegrass artists precedes the Civil Rights era.

Yet regardless of when and where they're set, CCL's songs have plenty of timeless things to say about longing ("One More Minute"), the desire for change ("Sweet Eviction") and the importance of place ("Country Boy/City Boy"). More significant, it's refreshing to hear a group stand successfully on the strength of sheer beautiful tunes.