Press

Praise from singer-songwriter Rachel Sumner
Old Habits contains an abundant spectrum of beauty within it - natural, earthy sounds and sparkling, ethereal moments that surround poetic songs sharing stories and yearnings we can all relate to.

Americana UK - Album Review
...at once both fresh and aged.

Vocally, Sasso, especially, has a voice that sounds as if it has echoed down the ages; were the crackle of ancient vinyl present, it might have come straight from the Bristol Sessions of 1927.

Wallace, meanwhile, helps bring their sound up to date, her clear voice never over-powering the songs beneath, but lending a harmonic lilt which is easy on the ear and gives the record a warmth which compliments the more austere tones of Sasso.

...songs such as ‘Rain On my Windows’, ‘The Great Conjunction’ and ‘After Our Fall’ have a lineage from the likes of Kate Wolf, Tom Paxton, Pete Seeger, and even further back...

...it is subtle and understated. This is to the credit of the pair, who (like the band around them) clearly have the musical chops to take flight, but consistently ease back on overplaying, and so allow the songs to breathe in the natural light.

‘Old Habits’ is highly recommended if your tastes run to unfettered mountain music, traditional folk and bluegrass. It carries musical echoes of the earliest work of Alison Krauss and Nickel Creek, not to mention the old-time stylings of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. A very worthy addition to the folk/bluegrass/singer-songwriter genre, this record carries a real sense that there is plenty more to come, while giving the listener so much to enjoy with the songs that are here now.

Praise from Grammy-winning cellist Mike Block:
"Kat and David will give you the feeling of a long hug with their music, which is beautifully arranged and wonderfully performed. I highly recommend listening to them while cozying up with a cup of coffee, or a glass of wine, depending on the time..."

Praise from mandolinist Joe K. Walsh
“On Old Habits, Kat Wallace and David Sasso have managed to gracefully find that thing we're all chasing after: a sound that is at once both familiar and new. The melodies, songs, playing and singing feel like old friends who have something new to share with us. I'm loving this new record.”

Mandolin Cafe
“New smokin’ good original music for violin and mandolin…”


Arts Paper
“...richly poetic, musically tight and heartfelt…”

“Stuff Of Stars criss-crosses lyrical (and briefly, cosmic) territory, equal parts sumptuous and sparse…”

“They are smart and literary but also unpretentious, sometimes funny and quite winsome, with a musical grab bag of tricks that keeps giving.”

“...exuberant and intoxicating…”

New Haven Independent
“Both lyrically and musically, this kind of mix of found sources and original material, the planting of feet in traditional music while finding plenty of room to stretch out, permeates the entire album, making Stuff of Stars a thoughtfully innovative record.”

“…familiar enough to be welcoming, yet with enough chromaticism to keep things interesting and eerily beautiful. Wallace and Sasso unfurl knotty harmonies with ease before Wallace takes flight on a sweeping solo that the cello answers. Then they bring it all quietly home.”