Not everyone in the Midwest is a corn farmer or a conniving waste of space who refuses to resign from his abused position of undeserved power. Bon Iver is proof that good things do come out of being in the Midwest. After finally seeing him perform live, I felt compelled to return to IL, hole myself up in a cabin, and see if I can do something meaningful with my time. Now, all I need to do is somehow gain an extraordinary amount of talent.
With a supporting band, Justin Vernon aka Bon Iver played for a packed crowd at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. This was his third and final night in New York, and he seemed pleased to be wrapping it up at the Music Hall. Before the show, I had wondered how Bon Iver's acoustic singer-songwriter sound would translate onto the stage with the band. Well, they sounded amazing, and you should definitely go see Bon Iver if you have the opportunity. The additional instruments and vocals worked well at MHOW by creating a necessary balance in sound that I'm used to hearing on record. But, in all seriousness, Bon Iver sounded better than any act that I'd ever seen at MHOW.
Bon Iver basically performed everything off his upcoming EP (minus "Woods") and For Emma, Forever Ago, except for "Blindsided." Has he been leaving this one out at recent shows? "Blindsided" is one of my favorite tracks, so I was slightly disappointed by that. However, Justin's performance of "Re: Stacks" more than made up for that absence. "Re: Stacks" was so stunning that I couldn't help but get a little teary. With knots in my stomach, I could actually feel what he was singing. It's bittersweet and it hurts a little, but that's life. Wow, I sound very emo right now.
There was no cover of Sarah Siskind's "Lovin's for Fools" at this show, but Bon Iver did surprise us with a different cover. When Justin started singing the first line of the Outfield's "Your Love," I couldn't help but laugh. Of course, the crowd loved it and very happily sang along, myself included. Speaking of covers, the opening act also played a crowd-pleaser. The Tallest Man on Earth ended his set with "These Days." The version that I'm most familiar with is that of Nico, featured on The Royal Tenenbaums soundtrack. Love the guitar intro. Watch the video of the performance here, courtesy of Hooves on the turf.
One word of advice. If you do go to a Bon Iver show, try to position yourself away from girls who look like they came prepared for a karaoke night. They sorta kill the mood when their voices start to drown out everything else. It should be a given that one shall not sing along loudly with the band unless explicitly directed to do so (i.e. for "The Wolves"). In fact, Bon Iver designed an entire audience-participation exercise so that you can get that singing aloud thing out of your system in a controlled manner. Thanks, Justin.
For Emma, Forever Ago was one of my favorite albums in 2008.
Bon Iver: Wolves I & II from hoovesontheturf on Vimeo.
Re: Stacks - Bon Iver
For Emma - Bon Iver
Blindsided - Bon Iver
December 13, 2008
Bon Iver - MHOW 12.12.08
December 8, 2008
Top Albums of 2008: For Emma, Forever Ago
via North Coast Journal
Although For Emma, Forever Ago was technically self-released in 2007, I’ve decided to count its Jagjaguwar release in February 2008 so that I could put it on this list. I may have been an emo kid in high school, but now it is rare for me to be moved by recorded music. Luckily for me, Justin Vernon aka Bon Iver spent three months in a cabin in Wisconsin, and this album was the beautiful product of that time. Who says nothing good comes out of the Midwest??
Lately, I’ve been revisiting For Emma, Forever Ago. I’ve been pretty excited for his upcoming show at Music Hall this Friday, and I’ve been counting down the days ever since I purchased my tickets. I don’t think I’ve listened to this much Bon Iver since back in May, right before I left for my summer backpacking trip. During the days leading up to my departure, I spent a lot of time playing “Blindsided” due to this easy-to-follow tutorial. There are some really gorgeous chords in there.
A little bit of Bon Iver is perfect for the sudden bout of cold weather that we’ve been experiencing here. I may have spent most of my life in Illinois, but all the years in New York have weakened my winter tolerance. Now, all I want to do is curl up in bed with a book while listening to some of this beautifully haunting album.
And, if you haven’t already, I highly recommend that you check out Bon Iver’s upcoming EP, Blood Bank. It leaked last week, but I won’t be posting it up here. The title song is about being stuck in the snow with someone you don’t know. Just to warn you, I’ve caught myself getting teary over this song on two separate occasions while waiting for the subway. I pretended that I had something in my eye. Listen to it here.
Bon Iver, see you in a few days.
Re: Stacks - Bon Iver
Flume - Bon Iver
Other Top Albums of 2008:
A Reflection
Atlas Sound - Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel
The Dodos - Visiter
Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant EP
The Walkmen - You & Me
Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line
TV on the Radio - Dear Science
Department of Eagles - In Ear Park
Deerhunter - Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.
December 1, 2008
Top Albums of 2008: A Reflection
No Jens Lekman album this year, but at least I saw him twice
I feel like I've been spending way too much time on Ukulele Hunt and not enough on blogging. H. just told me that I haven't posted in a blog century. So, as the year is nearly coming to an end, it's time for the "Best of 2008" lists. I started jotting down a rough list in my notebook a couple months ago, but I'm sure I've missed plenty of records that were released in the early part of the year. Some of these albums have somehow changed my tastes and thoughts on music. Others are just too much fun to not enjoy. Life-changing or not, these records are the ones that have shaped my year. It's funny how I can listen to one of these albums and be transported back to the place/time/weather that I associate with it.
As a little refresher, I've looked up my personal list of 2007's top albums. Oh, the hilarity.
Top Albums of 2007 (in no particular order):
Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend (Blue CD-R Demo)
!!! (Chk Chk Chk) - Myth Takes
Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
Simian Mobile Disco - Attack Decay Sustain Release
Yeasayer - All Hour Cymbals
Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?
Jens Lekman - Night Falls Over Kortedala
Fujiya & Miyagi - Transparent Things
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Peter Bjorn and John - Writer's Block
I know what you're thinking. Where is Bon Iver on this list? Bon Iver turned out to be more of a 2008 thing for me. I've spent many hours attempting to play "Blindsided" on my acoustic. Can I count Bon Iver's debut as an album of 2008 since it was re-released in February? Oh, you may also be asking me what the hell I was thinking with a couple of these on my list. Things change? Also, I think Beirut should have been on that list. I've been listening to a lot of The Flying Club Cup recently. Perhaps, that is also ukulele-influenced. Then again, there are many 2007 albums that I didn't have the opportunity to appreciate until 2008...
Anyway, some of these albums have continued to be classics for me. Just a few minutes ago, I was playing Jens' "Your Arms Around Me" on the ukulele (If anyone has the ukulele version of that, please please send it this way). Just recently, I've been listening to a lot of Vampire Weekend. Judge me if you will, but I associate Vampire Weekend with the fall and early winter, which was when I was listening to their demo on repeat last year. And, a year ago, I never thought that VW would blow up in the way that they did. Now, I'm sickened by how often I hear their name. I can admit it: I am jealous. But, I can't deny that "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" is a great pop song. Unfortunately, since their demo made my list in 2007, their proper debut will not be on my 2008 list since the two are roughly the same.
If you're a relatively frequent follower of this blog, you will find that some of the albums on my list are predictable. Clearly, I've greatly favored a handful of bands this year. But, there will be surprises since there are some awesome albums that I never got around to blogging about.
Your Arms Around Me - Jens Lekman
Top Albums of 2008:
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
Atlas Sound - Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel
The Dodos - Visiter
Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours
Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes/Sun Giant EP
The Walkmen - You & Me
Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line
TV on the Radio - Dear Science
Department of Eagles - In Ear Park
Deerhunter - Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.
