Review: Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver (2011)

By Ryan G

If someone had asked me a year ago if I listened to Bon Iver, I would politely said “No,” while in my head thinking “psh, another hipster artist…”  However, after a couple of recent recommendations I decided to give this project a go with a spin of his most recent release, via Spotify.  First, I watched the video for “Holocene” on Youtube.  While at first I found his voice to be a bit strange, by the end of the video I had been won over by the Sigur Ros-esque visuals (watch “Glosoli, for instance) and the otherworldly vibe of it.

This self-titled release avoids the dreaded sophomore slump (a cliche thing to point out in an album review, perhaps –  but I believe necessary in this case).  The album is diverse, yet consistent.  Since I am not a professional musician, I cannot go into the detail necessary to explain all the brilliance in this record.  However, I can describe it in terms of the images it evokes in my mind.

Sometimes, when you listen to a record you want to stop everything you’re doing and just take it in.  This record does that.  The titles in this record illustrate a journey to places that might not exist in the geographical sense, but certainly do in the imagination.  The distant march-like snare in “Perth” beckons the listener to partake in this, while “Holocene” brings you into the heart of the journey with Justin Vernon’s soothing falsetto, amidst a quiet but effective acoustic melody. “Hinnom, Tx” is such that it could fit hiking in Iceland or Alaska, or driving down a road amidst, say, a Texas sunset (see the accompanying youtube video). “Wash.” and “Calgary” both sound like they would fit their respective geographic correlations.  The location theme is broken in the ending opus “Beth/Rest” which kind of has a winter-esque feel.  I definitely gravitate more toward “pensive” music around the holiday season and this would fit right in.

Give “Bon Iver” a listen and see where it takes you.  If you are a fan, where has this journey transported you? Discuss in the comments.

Score: 5/5

Bon Iver: Official | iTunes

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