Gillian Welch: The Harrow & The Harvest - Pop Matters

Throughout its ten songs, The Harrow & The Harvest locks into oldness and Americana.  What we have are ten more examples of what make Welch & partner David Rawlings great: high lonesome harmonies, beautifully judged musicianship, exquisite songcraft, and a relationship with tradition that is both serious and playful.

The same awareness of fate that drove so many of those old ballads, and that howls like a bitter wind through the Carter Family’s repertoire, informs many of the songs on The Harrow & The Harvest. Indeed, one way to read that title (beyond the very tempting connection to a certain Neil Young album) is as a recognition of the cyclical inevitability of the seasons, of sowing and reaping, the rewards and punishments wrought by time.

The full article is available here