Who’s Bon Iver? Many might ask this same question that I asked myself when I first saw the great reviews they were getting. Could they be as good as the indie bands of last year? Bands like Mumford & Sons, Florence + the Machines, Iron & Wine and many more opened up the market to what the folk-indie genre had to offer. They achieved success both commercially and critically. Will Bon Iver do the same? What makes them so praise-worthy? With these questions in mind, I did a bit of research and went out and bought their latest album to see what they’re offering.
Bon Iver is the self-titled sophomore album by the band. Upon listening to it, I could immediately tell the difference between them and a lot of other indie and mainstream acts: their music is very ambient-oriented. Although they are a band, they can totally pass off as being a one-man project. There are rarely loud parts in any of the songs, and many of their songs have a soft, calm vibe to them. The instrumentation is a unique characteristic of their music. They incorporate many different kinds of instruments, many of which are very uncommon for the genre; for example, banjo, brass, saxophone, strings and even synthesizers are found within these songs. These instruments were then arranged to create the specific atmosphere of sounds that they wanted. Also incorporated with these unusual instruments in each song are the genres that the instruments originated from. This exploration of different genres can be heard in many of the songs on the album.
The first song, Perth, exemplifies this style of theirs. With a very soft, melodic beginning, the song serves as an instrumental intro by setting up the overall atmosphere and mood for the entire album. It prominently features instruments such as snare drums, piccolo, cymbals, and trumpets. Beth/Rest features a style similar to jazz with a combination of electric guitar, keyboard, saxophone and other string instruments. The vocals of the song are slightly distorted to give an electronic feel to the song.
After listening to this relatively short album, I’ve realized that Bon Iver is doing something different; they did not conform to the mould of mainstream rock. In fact, they don’t even follow the vague framework of today’s indie rock genre. What makes them a good band is that they have a different sound compared to other indie rock groups; they can compose songs with a musical atmosphere alone and can be successful without the use of vocal talent. If you want to listen to something different, something you’ve probably never heard before, give them your world and they will, relatively, rock yours.
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