REVIEW: Bon Iver - Bon Iver

Bon Iver
Bon Iver
(out of 5)

In 2008 Justin Vernon made one of the most beautiful records I have ever heard. For Emma, Forever Go still puts me into a bizarre form of romantic catatonic state on a regular basis, and for this reason I was a bit apprehensive about his latest self-titled offering – (let’s blame it on that fear of ruining those rose-tinted memories of the past). Upon the fourth or fifth consecutive listen however, it became very obvious that such irrationality was totally unfounded. Bon Iver has created one of the most beautiful things I have heard this year.

From the opening guitar strains of leader track ‘Perth’, you know that something quite special is about to happen. Musically quite different to the stripped-down approach of his earlier work, the record is stacked with fresh ideas - from the encompassing orchestration to Vernon’s much-commented vocal innovation. Gone are the days of being holed up in the woods, recording tunes in a tin shack somewhere; what we have here is a full-blown studio production, and the investment rewards with some magic moments.

Bon Iver - Perth

Where ‘Perth’ borrows the brass section of the ‘Sufjan-Stevens’-One-Man-Orchestra’, ‘Minnesota’ exquisitely combines electronic synthesis and Appalachian folk, throwing distortion samples over glittering guitar and banjo work. The track is brimming with ideas; Vernon “didn’t lose it in the stacks” and the results are increasingly positive. The beautifully composed ‘Holocene’ slows things down a bit, sliding gentle chord progressions over dreamy snare rolls and hit hats, inciting down-on-your-mind dreams of romance and adventure. Through the lyrics, Vernon claims that “once he knew he was not magnificent”. Nothing could be further from the truth – the song continues to assault every emotion-baring organ in my body.

Bon Iver - Calgary

The record’s song titles are mainly place names, which seeks to cement road-trip geography to the musical landscape of the record. This connection between place and sonic art is typical of the genre (please listen to fellow neo-folk pioneers Fleet Foxes’ recently-released Helplessness Blues, and everything from lesser-known art-rockers Shearwater). This holistic form of song-writing intentionally casts the mind’s interpretation of the work far beyond the artist’s original vision. In this regard, the use of bike-bell-as-percussive-element in ‘Michicant’ makes sense. The romantically-tinged track furthers its agenda by forcing the listener to recall where and when the sound has occurred in the past (from experience, some of my more romantic moments have involved bike rides). Bon Iver is a clever artist, knowing full well that the music itself is only part of the aural experience.

The records ends on a high note; 'Beth/Rest' is a full-blown big fat romantic 80s love-ballad. A Phil Collins-inspired slow jam which manages to squash in heavy synths, hair-guitar licks, swooning saxophone lines, life-changing guitar solos, big drum fills and the ever-present slide guitar. All that’s missing is the Cadbury Gorilla playing drums. 'This Is Us' Vernon proclaims in full falsetto; a statement settling Bon Iver’s contribution to music. He deserves to win a Grammy for this one. I’ve listened to it about 30 times already and the record hasn’t even been released yet (note: I’m allowed to). It takes a lot to impress a music writer and this thing floors me every time. Team Vernon.

Written by Theo Sangster.