Honey Jar Records (auditioned as CD). 2023. Chris Wood, Oliver Wood, Jano Rix, and Brook Sutton, prods.; Sutton, Rix, Evan Wilber, Dan Davis, Daniel Thiels, Trina Shoemaker, Eric Conn, engs.
The Wood Brothers. For this, their eighth studio record, the Wood Brothers (Chris Wood, bass; Oliver Wood, guitar; Jano Rix, percussion and keyboards) have embraced the chemistry of their live shows. The album was recorded quickly, with miking that was simple and spare. The engineers captured the performances in real time, direct from the studio floor to 16-track analog tape. They did it that way not only—or not directly—for the sonics, but also as an intentional constraint, to limit what could be done to the music later, to prevent the application of endless digital studio efforts intended to perfect but ultimately sanitizing the sound. The result is a record that feels in the moment, perhaps weightier than it actually is, with a vibe that centers itself to a groove instead of computer-driven nuance.
