"Who knew two white dudes from Grand Junction, Colorado could be so cool?
Flat Top Reed's Paul Harshman and John Anglim, with a little help from their friends, have done it again. Their new CD, "Junction", is way cool. These guys know how to sing and play the blues.
...A studio produced CD, "Junction" is a seamless blend of original songs and traditional blues tunes. From the first cut, "Purple Tattoo" to "Crazy Blues" it is a delightful, toe-tapping journey. The more I've listened to it, the better I like it."
Darralee Coba - Grand Junction Free Press (Mar 9, 2007)
"Flat Top Reed is by no means limited to folk-blues, good as they are at that. Their first album consisted of an acoustic folk blues sound for which they became known, and it's earned them quite a devoted following. Fans like myself, some of whom wore out copies of the first Flat Top CD with repeated playing, have been waiting excitedly to see where they would go next.
Now on "Junction", we hear their increasing mastery of various sounds and their ability to transform those sounds into an approach uniquely their own.
"Coo Coo" stretches the Flat Top Reed sound to include fiddle, with country inflections and a lonesome, almost eerie sound. "Buffalo Gal", a straightforward singer-songwriter ballad, also includes fiddle. "Purple Tattoo", the CD's opening track, explores new and upbeat territory as the boys rock things a bit. Then there's "Crazy 2", a jaunty little tune that is, for me, the highlight of the album. Its feeling is light and breezy, with female backup singers interacting playfully with Flat Top and Reed. Timing in at just three minutes, it has the timeless vibe of a pop hit single.
Altogether, this new Flat Top Reed release will please both their loyal fan base and newcomers to their music. It expands on their mellow, personable sound, while always staying on that comfortable back porch where their listeners like to meet them. Their next challenge will be to bring that back porch to listeners beyond Western Colorado, and with their fine musical workmanship, Flat Top Reed should pull that off in fine style.
Give Junction a listen; you'll be glad you did."
Rebecca Davis Winters - freelance article (Mar 23, 2007)