Digital Download Review — Bon Iver, “Blood Bank”
I realize it’s been a really long time since I’ve posted, so to the tens of you who visit Digital Metropolis, my apologies. There are a ton of half-cooked posts about music, products and Fallout 3 (can’t stay away!) but given that I have a meeting in an hour I thought I’d just write a short review of Bon Iver’s new EP, “Blood Bank.” This will have to do until tomorrow, when I can talk about something a little longer and will give me some more opportunities to ramble nearly incoherently (and continue my string of not proofreading anything I write).
So, Bon Iver. Obviously you’ve heard of him, given his incredibly successful 2007/2008 release, For Emma, Forever Ago. The previous release was an exercise in simplicity. Justin Vernon reportedly locked himself in a cabin in Wisconsin and recorded everything himself. Understandably, For Emma made a splash in the indie world and was subsequently picked up and rereleased on Jagjaguwar at the beginning of 2008.
After such a debut, what would his next release bring? Well, more of his hushed, harmonized vocals, simple and sort of depressing ballads, and a compelling use of the talk box (yes, yes, Peter Frampton called…) with the backing of an actual band.
“Blood Bank,” the title track, sounds like the Bon Iver we’ve all come to love, albeit with higher production values (and an electric guitar). Pretty standard stuff but higher quality all around — sort of like the Strokes’ second album.
“Beach Baby,” brings the acoustic guitar back into the mix. This mix sounds like he put it together in the cabin, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but the vocals seems to crack and distort a bit when Justin reaches for the higher registers. The dropoff in sound quality from “Blood Bank” to “Beach Baby” is significant, but the slide guitar nearly makes up for it. Understandably, “Beach Baby” brings an island vibe to his traditional, isolated sound.
“Babys,” the third track on the EP, makes use of some staccato piano and is probably the least structured song on the EP. The distinctive harmonies are still present, but they don’t show up until about halfway through. “Babys” sounds like two songs attached at the hip but without any real direction taking you from song 1 to song 2.
“Woods,” is the standout. It’s like Bon Iver heard Kanye’s new album (cough, Gary Numan called), was annoyed with the botch job on the talk box, and decided to change up his harmonies with a little more electronic feel. “Woods” would sit next to Imogen Heap’s “Hide and Seek” but is definitely, definitley more soulful and compelling. “Woods” is a simple, fairly repetitive track, but is layered and sonically complex. Definitely the highlight.
“Blood Bank” is available on iTunes, eMusic, and presumably Amazon as well.
Tags: Amazon, blood bank, bon iver, Digital Download, emusic, for emma forever ago, iTunes, jagjaguwar, kanye west, review
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February 2, 2009 at 7:15 pm
the slide guitar is THE best part of “beach baby.” as far as “babys” goes, the music doesn’t move me and the spelling of the song title bothers me
February 2, 2009 at 7:16 pm
it would bother you. weirdo.
February 2, 2009 at 7:23 pm
i agree with pony. also, i just finished listening to the EP and afterwards it went straight into “for emma, forever ago.” i’d still take its 4 “weakest” tracks over the new EP
February 2, 2009 at 7:30 pm
maybe, doug. maybe. but would you take any of the four weakest over woods? no way.
February 2, 2009 at 11:00 pm
you’re freaks. all three of you.
“i’m sorry.”