If there ever was a band/artist that can be squarely tied to what is now dubbed as ambient country it is the trio that goes under the name of Suss.
Continuously creating a series of wide-screen, slow-moving soundscapes, Bob Holmes (mandolin, guitar, harmonica, violin), Pat Irwin (electric guitar, resonator guitar, keyboards) and Jonathan Gregg (pedal steel guitar), have quickly become the keystone of this fast-developing sub-genre.
In that respect, there are no changes on the group’s latest album Birds & Beasts. Yet, there are subtle, layered, slow-developing changes within the music.
It has become even more ‘wide-screen’, spaced-out if you will, as the band’s excursions become longer and yes, wider. As Gregg, puts it, “We’re not sure where we’re going, but we know when we’ve arrived, and it’s never the same place twice”.
And that is exactly the sense you get listening to the seven compositions here, as the spaces between notes add that extra substance to an already seemingly simple, but quite complex sound Suss are able to create with their music. To all that, the trio is able to infuse more melody-oriented elements within their soundscapes, further advancing their forays into ambient country.
