Farewell 2011 – Music Review – Bon Iver by Bon Iver

Note from Craig: We could never all agree on a single album for album of the year, but it just so happened that Denny and I agreed on this one.  That in mind, we thought this album deserved its own extended mention in Farewell to 2011.  I now hand it off to Denny.

Greetings, humans (and web-scraping services)! This summer I kind of went ‘bananas’ when Bon Iver’s new album leaked was released. Being the excitable person I can be from time to time, I let Craig know about the album and how awesome I found it to be – like, I emphatically let him know. Since I tipped Craig off to the album, he asked me to drop by and write an album review for the site’s 2k11 Farewell Tour™, so here goes:

For the uninitiated, Bon Iver is the nom de plume of Justin Vernon, the Wisconsin singer/songwriter whose 2008 album For Emma, Forever Ago made quite the splash – one big enough to land Vernon in-studio in Hawaii with Kanye West during the recording of West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (a setting in which few would expect to find a writer of slow, stark songs). This anecdote is my roundabout way of informing you all that the guy has significant ‘buzz’, which built over the full three years between FEFA and this June’s self-titled Bon Iver.

From its outset, it’s apparent that while still from the same artist, Bon Iver is a work far-removed from the sparse ambiance of FEFA (Vernon worked with a full band for this album and recorded in-studio, resulting in an album with far more depth and fidelity – and to his credit, Vernon seems to have handled the solo-to-full ensemble transition better than Iron & Wine (née Sam Beam), whose January effort Kiss Each Other Clean left much to be desired). The opener ‘Perth’ quickly brings swirling guitars, percussion, and builds to a crescendo of overdriven guitars, horns, drums, and cymbals. It’s an aggressive opening to the album, especially in contrast to FEFA (I’m done talking about previous works now, I promise). ‘Holocene’ is a stunningly beautiful arrangement with acoustic guitars ringing in a perpetual loop, and xylophone and timpani accompaniments. The whole song seems to glisten, with the repeated ‘I can see for miles, miles, miles’ lingering far beyond the track’s end.

The middle of the album comprises the upbeat ‘Towers’, the FEFA-esque ‘Michicant’, and the echoing and open ‘Hinnom, TX’. These tracks are all solid but fall a bit short when compared to the opening third. ‘Wash.’ is a building piano-driven track, containing a serene second half that offers the album’s most bare and peaceful moments. The album closes with ‘Calgary’, ‘Lisbon, OH’, and ‘Beth / Rest’, a keyboard-driven trio that would make Steve Winwood proud. We’re brought full-circle by these songs, into full-accompaniment sets that close out the album right back where it started. Bon Iver is not for everyone – it’s neither in-your-face, nor is it a totally passive experience. It’s nuanced, and in the context of Vernon’s work it shows an incredible growth that isn’t present in so many sophomore albums (it’s clear that in between rolling giant blunts with Rick Ross in Hawaii, Yeezy taught Vernon well). That said, it’s not an easily accessible album for most listeners and may require a few spins to really take – but when it does, god-damn is it ever beautiful.

Bon Iver traveled with me through this summer while I was preoccupied with finishing the long slog of graduate school. I found myself returning frequently to the first three bars of ‘Holocene’ as a respite from the mental cacophony resulting from lab work, writing, coffee, bourbon, and not enough sleep. As a whole, that’s what this album is – a respite. Not a diversion per se, rather a catalyst to stepping back and relaxing, and ultimately to finding perspective and clarity. That’s where I’ve taken this album, or perhaps where Bon Iver has taken me. One wonderful thing about music is that it doesn’t only take us places – often times we remember where we’ve taken it (e.g.: Calexico and Iron & Wine’s In The Reins EP will forever remind me of a mid-morning train ride through the fields of southwest Germany). Given the opportunity, this album will take you somewhere. I hope you take it somewhere memorable.

Honorable Mention: A. A. Bondy, Believers; Matt Nathanson, Modern Love; The Roots, Undun

BON IVER “Holocene” from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.