Infamous Stringdusters' Garrett blazes path with "Wanderer's Compass"

Opening with his take on world music master Jai Uttal's 30-year-old "Footprints," Garrett presents originals mixed with covers of songs by writers ranging from an Israeli pop singer to Coldplay to Jimmie Rodgers. There are staples of his solo shows, like the studio duet with guitarist and labelmate Jon Stickley ("I'm Not The Enemy") and new songs written in the heat of troubled times ("The World Keeps Turning Around"), several with frequent collaborator Jon Weisberger.

"The idea of a 'Wanderer's Compass' really sums up for me what this collection of songs is all about," Garrett said. "I think it's completely respectable to follow one path in music and be really good at that one thing, but like a kid eyeing a candy store, I am one who's been drawn to the periphery of that path along the way. I grew up listening to so many styles of music, and even though bluegrass was my main focus early on, I can't help but embrace other styles of music that have also influenced me over the years. Music from pop, world, country, hip hop, bluegrass, rock, soul and gospel, have had powerful impacts on me and my style."

"This collection of songs is about exploration and discovery," he said. "An exploration, in the sense of bringing these styles together in a simulation of what could be a playlist to see how the songs and feels can complement one another. A discovery that, if you let art take you wherever it wants, it can push you beyond comfort into a realm you might never have thought possible."