album #60

ragged wood (fleet foxes)

I listened to this album a whole lot before writing this review. It's a really nice album; having loved Sun Giant so much, I couldn't wait to get to the next Fleet Foxes release. Overall, this album is not as consistently melodically perfect as Sun Giant; there's still a lot of loveliness. But overall, out of my favorite four or five Fleet Foxes tracks, only one came from this album. There's still a Lot of good stuff, nonetheless.

Robin Pecknold has a really beautiful voice- strong and clear, piercing the chilly autumn forest air. This group has really got a lovely sound figured out, a real throwback, acoustic/pop orchestral tone- and vocals that consistently seem to press with a startling forcefulness, a true intensity. Some of my favorites included "Ragged Wood," a real voyage of a song, forceful and ever shifting; "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song," a soulful, solo, acoustic ballad, "Oliver James," a beautiful closer with a sweet acoustic sound played against brilliantly strong, searing vocals; and the masterpiece, "Blue Ridge Mountains"- the first Fleet Foxes song I heard, the one that made me need to hear more, the one that remains my favorite. Simply perfect- lovely acoustics, a beautifully echoing, haunting piano, lovely vocals sang with clarity and passion, an alluringly sad but hopeful melody. On some of the albums I listened to several times, I started skipping the tracks I knew best- but with this record, I could never skip "Blue Ridge Mountains."

This is one of those albums where even the songs I don't mention are lovely and enjoyable. A very good album. I'm gonna have to keep my eye on these guys- they're not perfect for my tastes, but they're without a doubt a really lovely group making really beautiful melodies.