Three – The Hunger Mountain Boys (Old-Fi Records)

The Hunger Mountain Boys are a throwback to the days when the Carter Family and Jimmie Rogers were staples on rural America’s newest home entertainment device, the vacuum tube-driven radio.

When the swinging beat of “Hiccup Remedy Blues” starts this record off, the listener immediately knows this is going to be something different. From the fine lead work on the guitar to the infectious groove of the rhythm section, you’re instantly transported to the 1930s.

Teddy Weber (guitar and Dobro) and Kip Beacco (mandolin, guitar and fiddle) split the songwriting duties on the original songs on “Three” and the listener will be hard-pressed to tell these tunes weren’t written in the same bygone era as some of the covers chosen for the project. The songwriting hold its own along side The Delmore Brothers’ “Scatterbrain Mama” or Leon McCauliffe’s “Steel Guitar Rag.”

By combining many different styles and musical elements from popular music of the ’30s and ’40s era, including country, jazz, mountain music and western swing, The Hunger Mountain Boys have managed to fuse those diverse influences into an exciting and refreshingly unique sound.

While “Three” isn’t a dyed-in-the-wool bluegrass album, it’s crammed with catchy, well-written original songs along with a handful of choice covers. The CD features a soundscape that is steeped in rural American musical tradition.

“Three” showcases The Hunger Mountain Boys as a trio of solid musicians delivering performances that are sure to transport the listener to a different time and place and should appeal to fans of acoustic music of all bents.