Summer is (almost) over and so all you’ve got is memories of your glorious vacation. One way to relive it is to listen to the new CD by Erik Friedlander, a solo cello homage to all the road trips he took as a boy. Now I know that sounds crazy: Cello? Solo? Road trips? But watch the "taking trips to America" video on his web site. Friedlander plucks and caresses those strings as if the cello were a ginormous guitar, creating a wistful mood that makes you feel as if you’re in the back seat of a vintage Chevy, watching endless stretches of road whiz by and catching a glimpse of a rock shaped like a rutabaga, a herd of bison, a Burma Shave billboard. Friedlander’s compositions draw from the classics, jazz, and roots music, but sound like nothing you’ve heard before because really, how much solo cello does anyone listen to? Friedlander’s eloquent and surprising CD is called Block Ice & Propane—the two things that keep a road tripper cool and hot.

Comments