"The Western Star is trailblazing. This is what new music is all about."
-Matt Smith, Club Passim

"His singing, fiddling, guitar and banjo will rip your heart out again and again. Superb work throughout"
-Sing Out Magazine

"Eric brings us into the fold with exquisite fiddling and resonant vocals. He's clearly listened to and absorbed the greats of his chosen traditions, but one senses that he was never an imitator. There's a rare combination of poignancy and fire in his music that cannot be learned."
-Dirk Powell

"More so than any other musician I can think of, Eric Merrill has an optimal grounding in both Irish and Appalachian idioms, and the switch-hitting power of his playing can be heard throughout "The Western Star." ... it captures the robust energy and virtuosic delicacy of each without a trace of dilution."
-Earle Hitchner, The Irish Echo