Nickel Creek
A Dotted Line

Release Date: 2014 | Tracklist

They were prodigies in their tweens, and they caught the 90’s music world with a storm that wasn’t seen by any radar. With each subsequent album put out in the 2000s, they pushed boundaries and broke down walls – they could never fit into any one category. With their traditional bluegrass instrumentation and their inner punk-rock sensibilities, they were the most endearing and enticing wolves in sheep’s clothing. Perhaps above all, they made it possible to head bang to a mandolin solo, and for that we will always be humbled in the presence of Chris Thile and the Watkins siblings. After three ambitious, innovative, and flawless records, their indefinite hiatus in 2006 led to successful side projects for each member, as well as the credibility for each respective member to collaborate with a variety of artists such as Switchfoot’s Jon Foreman, John Mayer, Jackson Brown, and even Yo Yo Ma. And now, 8 long years later, the rumors were found to be true, and the members of Nickel Creek reunited in the studio, teaming up with Eric Valentine (Third Eye Blind, Queens of the Stone Age, Good Charlotte) to create their fourth studio album, the long-awaited and highly anticipated A Dotted Line.

Nickel Creek’s first three albums could easily be categorized: the self-titled was the most traditionally folk/bluegrass, This Side had the most pop-sensibilities, and Why Should the Fire Die (also produced by Valentine) was in many ways a rock album with a bluegrass outfit. True to its name, the band’s new record effectively connects the dots and brings all of their tricks out their sleeve. Not surprisingly, the backbone of this album is the combination of Mandolin, Violin, Acoustic Guitar, and String Bass to lay out a canvas of bluegrass which is never absent. But from there, each song goes in a different direction. From the traditional country-folk (“21st of May”) to the aggressive rock-infused tunes (“You Don’t Know What’s Going On”), the quintessential dynamic power-ballads (“Love of Mine”), and instrumental rollercoaster rides (“Elephant in the Corn”); Nickel Creek has managed to bring the unique qualities of each of the former albums and paint them into one portrait.

The result is an exciting and surprising journey into the eclectic heart of the band, as each song twists and turns in its own path, all the while staying true to its identity as Nickel Creek. Even when delving into new territories, such as the experimental cover of Mother Mother's “Hayloft”, which is part pop, part hip-hop, part punk, part western, the band still retains its familiar ambition and unorthodox charm. But the songs that work best are the ones fans will feel like they’ve heard before; the powerfully dynamic tunes that wouldn’t fall short of anthemic status, and have not been absent on any Nickel Creek album, stand prominently on A Dotted Line. Opening track, “Rest of My Life” starts things with a layered explosion, as Thile sings “It’s one of those endings when no one claps / ‘Cause they’re sure that there’s more / What a great way to start the first day of the rest of my life.” With its soaring vocal harmonies and controlled dynamic crescendos and decrescendos, the song stands as a powerful way to start the album, moving right into the album’s first single, “Destination”, which builds off an enchanting riff that leads into one of the strongest choruses in the band’s career, that wouldn’t have been out of place on Why Should The Fire Die. Right at the heart of the record, another single and stand-out track, “Love of Mine”, is a love song written to a child who will be leaving with its mother after a break-up – the unique perspective coalesces with the complexity of the music, which fights between calm and calamity, materializing as one of climactic moments on the album.

It would be wrong to say that there is nothing new on this record, but it suffices to say that the strongest moments on A Dotted Lines are the ones that bring familiar elements of Nickel Creek’s history to the table, using old colors for a new illustration. Ultimately, A Dotted Line is a reunion more than it is a step forward – Nickel Creek knows who they are better than they ever have before, and thankfully they have used that to their advantage.

Tweet

Recent reviews by this author
Neon Trees Pop Psychology	Manchester Orchestra Cope
Michael Kiwanuka Home Again	Switchfoot Fading West
Billie Joe Armstrong/Norah Jones Foreverly	Sugar and the Hi-Lows Sugar and the Hi-Lows

user ratings (31)

rate it Awful - 1 Very Poor - 1.5 Poor - 2 Average - 2.5 Good - 3 Great - 3.5 Excellent - 4 Superb - 4.5 Classic - 5

3.8 excellent

Rank: #0 for 2014