Bon Iver / Bon Iver
Album: Bon Iver   Collection:General
Artist:Bon Iver   Added:Oct 2011
Label:Jagjaguwar  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2011-10-30 Pull Date: 2012-01-01
Week Ending: Jan 1 Dec 25 Dec 18 Dec 11 Dec 4 Nov 27 Nov 20 Nov 13
Airplays: 2 1 1 3 3 2 5 3

Recent Airplay
1. Jun 11, 2024: Traditions
Perth
4. Nov 07, 2015: Mix Tape
Hinnom, Tx
2. Feb 04, 2019: grapevine
Wash.
5. Oct 24, 2013: All Things Go
Wash.
3. Nov 11, 2017: National Treasure
Holocene
6. Aug 28, 2013: Beach Blanket Bingo
Hinnom, Tx

Album Review
Trent Kay
Reviewed 2011-10-18
Bon Iver is Justin Vernon, and you can pronounce his band name in French if you please. Musically, this seems to me a mild-mannered fusion of Beck and Bibio (indie folk? indie folk), but you'll also like it if you like The National... maybe. Unexpected instrumentation, and a singer who can pull off falsetto and a growl inside the same track. Well-behaved, pretty. Mellow, soft, sweet. Nothing heartbreaking here, but a good rainy day record if there ever was. The fingerpicked guitar on all these cuts is lovely. Also, cool track title scheme.

FCC: 3, 4 (these snuck up on me -- please mark if you find more)
try: 8, 1, 6

*1. (4:22) ~8 sec to start. vibey electric guitar (think new age), soft choir, building snare. slow, falsetto. doubled guitar and vox. basically the same riff over and over, but it's a good riff. fade starts ~20 sec to end, blends to next track.

2. (3:53) nice slight tribal drums under lone electric. low beck-does-soul vox + sax, then fingerpicked banjo, then falsetto, then blow-out funk bass. mellow midtempo, but a lot of instrumental change-ups make it interesting.

3. (5:37) FCC "fucked" fingerpicked guitar over up-bend electric. slowly introduced brushed drums. mild, pretty, sweet.

4. (3:08) FCC "fuck" ha. guitar-only tom petty-esque lead-in -- but layers on falsetto and sax instead of turning into a classic rock song. goes somplace unexpected (violin is involved) in the last minute.

5. (3:46) false start, then doubled vox over slow waltz guitar. cool spare effects. empty and pretty. the token frozen lake track, and a good one.

*6. (2:45) cool reverb keys, low vox, spare, some funk elements (mainly in the vox). sort of sounds like a thunderstorm. this would be great with a techno beat under it. ends with twinkly keys.

7. (4:59) high-reg piano. pretty, spare, quiet, with a slightly disorienting time signature (it's a waltz, but the downbeat moves). some strings. early fade.

*8. (4:10) warm backing synth that sounds like an orchestra. then: padded drums and muffled horns. full drum kit comes in, and the song kicks off for real. electric build, ruder indie vox, and a trajectory you can dig into. short-lived ride, but worth it.

9. (1:33) slow long-held warble strings, bleep effects. sounds just like the sound bed that leads up to the fake bright eyes interview on fevers. no, really.

10. (5:17) oh my. 80s soft rock situation here. slow sax, vibe-effect keys, of-the-era electric. layered and very well produced. it's good, and meant to be dated, but i can't listen to it and not laugh.

Track Listing
1. Perth   6. Hinnom, Tx
2. Minnesota, Wi   7. Wash.
3. Holocene   8. Calgary
4. Towers   9. Lisbon, Oh
5. Michicant   10. Beth/Rest