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Fleet Foxes
Posted by Afton in Music.
Artist: Fleet Foxes
Album: Fleet Foxes
Label: Sub Pop
Release date: June 3, 2008
Genre: Folk rock
Any music critic will tell you it takes something, usually unquantifiable, for a band to stand out among the deluge of new releases that come out every week. An odd album name, too-clever lyrics, nudity in the cover art — sometimes just being associated with another act is enough (what else sets Chris Walla apart but his resume?) But when the sheer power of an album bowls you over, when it makes you stop what you’re doing, minimize your chat windows, close your eyes and just listen, that’s something rare. And the Fleet Foxes wield that power.
The first song, “Sun It Rises,” opens with some twangy a capella about a “red squirrel in the morning, red squirrel in the evening” and you think maybe you’ve slipped in the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack by mistake. A minute and a half in, though, and the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young harmonies hook you. Then comes “White Winter Hymnal,” which, being the masterpiece that it is, 1) is too short at 2:27 and 2) you should try to enjoy before it gets picked up and run into the ground by a coffee commercial.
The Fleet Foxes are a quintet from Seattle but could feasibly be from a backwoods town at the foot of any mountain east of the Mississippi. The ethereal nature themes are as evocative and colorful as anything by Wallace Stevens, and the texture of Robin Pecknold’s voice brings the woodland creatures, trees, sunshine and snow to life in such a way that you want to know everything about that squirrel, and you inexplicably invest yourself in its hopes and dreams.
Not rockin’ enough to be “rock” but too intense to be “folk,” the Fleet Foxes let their voices do most of the work, with some layered guitar and tambourine for help. But even for its simplicity, it’s an astonishingly complex work for a debut. Let’s just hope the same craftsmanship can be applied to subsequent albums.
Music | Comment (0)Mates of State
Posted by Afton in Music.
Artist: Mates of State
Album: Re-Arrange Us
Label: Barsuk
Release date: May 20, 2008
Genre: Pop rock
There are many bands that try to outdo themselves with every new album. Likewise, there are many critics who bemoan that a band falls short of expectations or entrenches itself in a well-worn musical rut when a new release doesn’t appear to pole-vault over every project it’s done up to that point. But the Mates of State are not in the former category, nor am I in the latter.
Re-Arrange Us doesn’t break new ground; it’s familiar; it’s more laid-back; and maybe it even wanders into twee territory at times. But what’s wrong with that? The Mates don’t write bad songs, and the edgy blend of husband-and-wife duo Kori Gardner’s and Jason Hammel’s voices never gets old. For fans, it’s comforting and a minor thrill to hear new material, and for newcomers, there’s plenty to be excited about (especially if you like the New Pornographers).
The biggest difference fans will notice is the absence of the electric organ, which Gardner has replaced with a regular piano. The overall sound is synth-happy enough, but the noticeable lack of the Hammond B-3 pounding in the background means the creation of songs that tread more lightly, like “My Only Offer,” a swift but serious foray into the land of grown-up decision-making. The highlight might be “Now,” a cosmic bubble bath where adult concerns find resolution in a temper tantrum.
The themes of childishness and maturing are natural, considering the pair recently experienced the birth of their second daughter. But trading in atonality for sweetness and staccato for slickness doesn’t mean the end or even a low point for the Mates. For an indie-rock staple on their fifth release, they’re still going strong.
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