seriously... what have i been doing with my time?
oh, right. that. heh.
sigh no more is quite possibly my most favorite album at the moment. since i've been treated to something called viking metal (wtf, i thought vikings died thousands of years ago) and dubstep lately, i thought i'd treat my ears to something with less wub wub wub and ancient nordic languages.
i have been sorely mistreating them as i have now learned.
i think it's pretty fitting since today marks the release of babel, marcus mumford and his boys sophmore release. i like the first single. it's hella catchy, but so is the new no doubt song, so i can't be a good judge of how epic a song may be.
hitting shuffle, my favorite song came on, winter winds. i've listened to this when it's come on shuffle a few times, but not when i've been in the mood for mumford and sons. i like the beat, like i could shuffle step across some carpet in a dowdy British country-side cottage. reminds me of fall; the leaves, the shortening of days, the smells. i want to listen to this song wrapped in an (itchy) wool blanket, looking at the leaves as they fall onto the ground. maybe i'll jump in those leaves.
i have to admit, the next song on my shuffle adventure reminds me of a robert pattinson (shush... everyone has a dirty closet of secret bones of awful music, so shut your fucking face) of solo guitar and pained singer. only if robert pattinson was singing it, it would sound infinitely worse. like someone was actually killing the singer. white blank page is a lot like little lion man in the aspect of the big finish, the toe-tapping crescendo and banjo twang-a-lang. it finishes kind of like a gospel song, which i'm not 100% sure is the goal they were aiming for.
continuing on my adventure is little lion man, a song i had heard in a hipster mixtape from birp.fm (formerly blalock's irp) like, nearly 2 years ago. it's probably still one of my more cherished mumford & sons sons. with lines like:
"but it was not your fault, but minei can forgive the fact that it sounds nearly identical to white blank page. i can forgive the album for having the same sound throughout it because of those lines.
and it was your heart on the line.
i really fucked it up this time my dear
didn't i, my dear?"
further into my trip down the shuffle adventure lane, we stumble onto the odd piano and electric guitar-laden dust bowl dance. i'm going out on a limb here, but this could possibly be a song about the dirty thirties. but then again, these hipsters with their 'steampunk' and 'vintage' make me consider that they're just using the catchy title. possibly the rockiest piece on the album (thus far), it's a pleasant departure from the banjo, folksy tunes of the entire album. this one gets a gold star for being different.
i refuse to write something about roll away your stone since i picture pleasant red-headed lads and lasses dancing in the street a la ireland potato famine era. its like a freakish hybrid between country-bear jamboree and led zeppelin's going to california. or that's how i interpret it. then again, it sounds a lot like the crescendo of white blank page and little lion man. such is the life of mumford and sons.
finally, we've arrived at the cave. i know what to expect: a guitar and marcus mumford's voice to introduce us to his unequivocated song writing ability. as we build to the bridge, the addition of a piano, and BAM. banjo! i have a sickness, and the only thing that can cure it is MOAR BANJO. it's still the most recognizable mumford and sons song, so... yeah. sounds so familiar, like i've listened to this three times already... i'm sensing a pattern forming, here.
thistle & weeds could be by far the biggest departure from the formulaic mumford. i'm digging it-- it's a darker version of the usually jaunty songs. the crescendos aren't where you would expect them. still has a hint of classical irish-folk song (particularly with the beat) and the old-fashioned piano is probably the best addition to the minor-keyed song. a definite love.
i'm getting bored, but for the sake of finishing something i start, i'll slog through.
the snoozer of sigh no more is a ballad... with a (shocking) crescendo!
(i'm going to skip to my favorite song and call it a day-- i have other things to do, like navel gazing and homework to do)
by far, the best song on the album is timshel. i don't know what it means, but i like it. the ballad doesn't have a crescendo, it has a soothing fucking guitar. it's written for mumford's vocal range, there is no foot stomping. i like the lyrics, they're both amazing and insightful. there's a little banjo, but who doesn't need a little banjo every once in a while? by far, the only reason to have this album is for this song. and maybe the cave, since you heard it a million times on the radio.
anyways, a definite must have, particularly on these blustery, wet fall evenings when you curl up on the couch with a book that outweighs your cat on modern architecture.
for a quick listen:
- timshel
- the cave
- white blank page
- thistle and weeds
