The Good Time Travelers, the songwriting partnership featuring Colorado’s Michael Kirkpatrick and recent Bendite Pete Kartsounes, decided to expand that equation for its sophomore album. “Mountain Song,” released in late March, adds a full backing band of musical heavy-hitters: Newgrass originator Sam Bush on fiddle is perhaps the most recognizable name here, but the album also features fiddler Enion Pelta-Tiller (Taarka), drummer Christian Teele (the “E Town” radio show, Donna Summer), bassist Julio Appling (The Student Loan) and banjoist/pedal steel player/engineer Aaron Youngberg.

Unsurprisingly, this set of musicians brings out the bluegrass in the duo’s wide-ranging acoustic equation. “Take the Blue Away” barrels out of the gate with rapid-fire strumming from Kartsounes and Kirkpatrick and an effortlessly sweet fiddle melody from Bush. Drums enter in the next barn-burner “Good Time Travelin’,” a theme song of sorts that emphasizes the duo’s harmonies. Two more strummers, “Only Love” and “Far Away and Back Again,” close out the album.

But between these two bookends lies a wide range of sounds and styles. “Dream No. 285” is an early highlight, with Kirkpatrick’s mandolin carving out a plinking melody that resolves in the duo’s anthemic, harmonized chorus. On the other end of the spectrum, “The Longest Day My Dear” rocks a staccato guitar figure from Kartsounes, while the Led Zeppelin song “Hey, Hey What Can I Do” that immediately follows gets a bit psychedelic toward the end.

Most of the songs were co-written, but each member gets a solo credit: Kirkpatrick’s “Rollin’ Rosie” is a loping country ballad, while Kartsounes’ “His Only Heart” tells a classic, working-class story set to another soaring fiddle line, this time from Pelta-Tiller.

While the band is a welcome addition, the focus remains on the two songwriters — and rightly so. In fact, the progressive, multipart title track, perhaps the strongest song here, features just Kartsounes on guitar and Kirkpatrick on mandolin.

The Good Time Travelers is currently touring Alaska and Arizona, and will play the Bender Jamboree in Las Vegas in April. Its next local show is July 25 at McMenamins Old St. Francis School.

— Brian McElhiney, The Bulletin