The Bollard

January 5, 2006

"Beauty of a Heart is The Coming Grass' first release since 2002. Hard to believe. In the meantime, we've been graced with excellent releases from band members Steve Jones – 2004's It Is What It Is (And It Does What It Does) -- and Sara Cox -- 2003's Arrive -- but it's awfully nice to hear new material from the whole band.

The songs on Beauty of a Heart don't mark a radical change of sound or direction for The Coming Grass. Instead, they remind me why this group has remained so consistently good: Nate Schrock writes strong lyrics, the guitar work of Schrock and Jones is top-notch, Cox's vocals never fail to please, and the rhythm section of Ginger Cote (drums) and Justin Maxwell (bass) build a sturdy groove. They're a tight band that isn't afraid to get loose.

Beginning with the layers of acoustic and electric guitars on the opener, "So Far Gone," Beauty of a Heart is warm thoughtful and, at times, rocking. On "Exploding Home," the band's sound is in full force, with lyrics to match: "Like a country song/ broken ties and deception/ love gone wrong/ wishes, cars/ what we lost because we can't surrender" and "I play guitar/ garage to bars/ and far away/ Now I work the mill/ gave up the will/ to change the world."

And what would a Coming Grass release be without Cox's stunning vocals? The first taste of full-on lead vocals from Cox comes on the fourth track, "Polly." Beginning as an acoustic-guitar-and-fiddle-inflected countrified lament, the tune stretches its legs as Cox stretches the vocals, soon blossoming into a beautifully layered and sonically powerful exploration of electric guitar, fiddle and voice.

Cox shines on "Cold Outside" and "Sugar," too, but the highest praise I can give Beauty of a Heart is to say the album is truly the work of a band. While The Coming Grass is made up of some very talented individuals, this album showcases the sum of the group's parts, and the result is a damn fine collection of tunes."